By SHERRY HALBROOK
It’s a good thing President Obama has said he wants to invest more federal stimulus money in roads and bridges, because their deterioration takes a toll on our cars, our time and our pocketbooks according to a national transportation organization based in Washington, DC.

TRIP released a report in January that found Albany drivers lose an average of $1,145 annually by “driving on roads that lack some desirable safety features, have poor pavement conditions or have inadequate capacity to meet travel demands.” Statewide, they cost New York motorists $16.4 billion.
The TRIP report, “Future Mobility in New York: Meeting the State’s Need for Safe and Efficient Mobility,” called on both the state and federal government to make funding for transportation a high priority even in these austere times. For PEF leaders the message was familiar.

“For years, we’ve been calling on state and federal budgetmakers to adequately fund road and bridge improvements,” said PEF President Ken Brynien. “The growth of our New York economy depends on this vital infrastructure.

“However, the key to maintaining high standards in this area, is to use the available tax dollars judiciously. The state cannot afford to waste the limited funds it has on high priced private consultants, when it could and should use state engineers, inspectors and other professional staff to do the work for far less cost,” Brynien said.

“In order to improve the state’s transportation system, ease the burden on drivers, and kick start New York’s economy, transportation investment must be a priority at the state and federal levels,” said Will Wilkins, executive director of TRIP.

TRIP found New York State faces a transportation funding shortfall of approximately $87 billion from 2010 to 2030. Closing that gap will be all the harder because 49 percent of the revenue going into the New York State Highway and Bridge Dedicated Trust Fund is currently being used to pay off debt. By 2013, debt service is expected to consume 72 percent of the fund’s revenues.

TRIP also noted state transportation funds meant to make needed road and bridge improvements are increasingly diverted for other needs.

From 1993-94 to 2008-09, just 35 percent of disbursements from the NYS Highway and Bridge Dedicated Trust Fund were spent on repairing and improving the state’s roads and bridges, and by 2013, it’s expected to drop to 21 percent.

“As TRIP has discovered, neglecting our state’s infrastructure hurts our economy and costs us personally as motorists,” Brynien said. “PEF will keep pressing our leaders to recognize the value of investing in the state work force, state services and the state infrastructure. These are the investments that pay off in better lives for all New Yorkers, now and in the future.