The phasing out of Motor License Fund revenue transferred to Pennsylvania State Police operations, along with federal transportation dollars from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, have helped keep PennDOT’s capital program afloat over the last several years.
However, over the next decade, conditions on state-owned roads will continue to decline, especially on local bridges, as PennDOT is forced to allocate diminishing resources to improve National Highway System routes to federally mandated standards. At the same time, gas-tax revenues continue decreasing as vehicles become more efficient and more people choose to drive electric vehicles.
A new report from TRIP, a national nonprofit transportation research organization, examines pavement conditions, bridge conditions and traffic fatality rates on local roads in Pennsylvania. TRIP’s report, entitled “Pennsylvania’s Local Roads & Bridges: Providing a Modern, Sustainable Local Transportation System in the Keystone State,” includes data for each Pennsylvania county and statewide.
A lack of transportation funding, increasing construction costs and evolving transportation demands are projected to lead to declining conditions on local roads and may jeopardize future economic competitiveness.
Pennsylvania’s local roads and bridges will require increased investment to improve pavement and bridge conditions, enhance safety, and promote economic vitality across the Keystone State. To read the entire TRIP report, follow this link.