Rhode Island faces a looming budget crisis in transportation that could lead to service cuts, higher taxes and new road and bridge tolls by 2004, the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council is warning.
The current system financing transportation in the state is unsustainable, and the problems are so great, and so systemic, that they can’t be solved simply by additional funding, according to a 38-page report, entitled “Rhode Island at the Crossroads,” issued by RIPEC on Sept. 16.
RIPEC is a private, business-backed organization that studies public policy issues.
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The major crisis in the state’s transportation system, acknowledged by transportation officials, can be placed under two umbrellas, said RIPEC Executive Director Gary Sasse.
“We came up with two major findings – the state has inadequate resources to finance its transportation system, and there is a need for one integrated decision making process,” said Sasse.
The problems jeopardize several hundred million dollars worth of major construction projects under way in the state, including the relocation of Route 195 and replacement of the Washington Street Bridge in Providence.
In particular, RIPEC says, the state bus system faces increasing service cuts each year unless it gets more money, beginning in fiscal year 2004.
The financial trouble is occurring for several reasons, according to RIPEC: the state has borrowed $30 million a year to pay its share of federally subsidized highway projects; the state’s gasoline tax – the highest in the nation – isn’t keeping up with rising costs; and Rhode Island has relied too heavily on federal aid for highway spending. Rhode Island gets 52 percent of its highway money from the federal government, while the national average is 25 percent.
“We don’t earmark any of our vehicle taxes and fees to support transportation. As a result, we’ve become more dependent upon federal dollars to support it,” said Sasse.
RIPEC outlined a strategy for rescuing transportation in Rhode Island. The group recommended shifting millions of dollars in revenue to transportation from other parts of the state budget, even if that results in tax increases or budget cuts in other programs.
Specifically, RIPEC suggested shifting an extra $7 million from the gasoline tax next fiscal year. That money now goes to the state’s general fund and is spent for other purposes. The group also wants the state to shift $31 million in registration and drivers’ license fees, now spent on other state expenses, to transportation over five years starting with the fiscal year after next.
RIPEC is also recommending that the state improve efficiency and accountability by reorganizing the state’s six transportation agencies under a single transportation secretary. The group said that money and time is wasted on duplicate activities in the Department of Transportation, the Port and Harbor Corporation, the Airport Corporation, the Turnpike and Bridge Authority, the Public Transit Authority and the Public Rail Corp.
