I think there is more than enough money for roads and highways. What you will find is large chunks of that money is being spent else where on everything from marine ferries, to bike trails, muni bus, light rail, everything but roads, and the same could be said for bridge tolls. The problem is government robbing money from the proper intent and spending it on things that people will not at the ballet box support. The problem is government, not enough taxes. HS
Some information:
Five myths about your gasoline taxes - CNN.com (from 2011)
The federal gas tax has remained unchanged at 18.4 cents for a gallon of gasoline (and 24.4 cents for diesel) for nearly two decades. It is not indexed to the price of crude oil or inflation, so Americans pay a fixed amount whether oil prices are high or low. Ironically, given today's debate, the last time the gas tax was raised in 1993 was for deficit reduction purposes.
Taking inflation into account, the gas tax has eroded to only 11 cents today. This has seriously diminished the ability to pay for infrastructure, with a purchasing power of 45 cents in gas taxes for every dollar in national highway construction costs. This means that only one-half of the transportation investments made since 1993 could be afforded today, even though GDP has grown 55% and demands (vehicle miles traveled) have grown 29%.
3. Gas taxes are unnecessary because the transportation system is paid for in other ways. Not so fast.
America's transportation system is going broke. Revenue for the Highway Trust Fund is derived almost entirely from federal gas taxes and distributed to all 50 states. It covers nearly 80% of the capital costs of federally-funded transportation projects, with states carrying the remainder. From 2008 to 2010, Congress transferred $34.5 billion from general fund revenues to make up the funding shortfall. This stopgap measure was necessary to continue projects that are already in the works. Moreover, deferred maintenance—the failure to care for existing roads and bridges—combined with lost productivity are estimated to add more than $100 billion to the national deficit annually.
http://www.c2es.org/docUploads/a-primer-on-federal-surface-transportation-reauthorization.pdf
Time To Overhaul America's Aging Bridges? : NPR
UPDATED: Drivers Cover Just 51 Percent of U.S. Road Spending | Streetsblog USA
The way we spend on roads has nothing to do with the free market, or even how much people use roads.
“Nationwide in 2010, state and local governments raised $37 billion in motor fuel taxes and $12 billion in tolls and non-fuel taxes, but spent $155 billion on highways,” writes the Tax Foundation’s Joseph Henchman. Another $28 billion of that $155 billion comes from revenue from the federal gas tax."
Fuel usage is down and tax hasn't changed in over 20 years, repair and maintenance costs are up and we are behind on keeping our bridges safe. The fact is that there is not enough money available to keep our bridges and roads in reasonable condition.
The way we spend on roads has nothing to do with the free market, or even how much people use roads.
https://cliffordlaw.com/shocking-statistics-u-s-bridge-collapses/
Age, Deterioration and Funding Remain Core Problems
Eleven percent of the nation’s 607,000 bridges were considered “structurally deficient” in 2012, according to the Federal Highway Commission.
It is an opinion that is not supported by facts that there is a better way to take care of our highways. Federal, State and Local Governments are the best we have. I support doing what we can to make them as efficient as possible.
Loren
