Future surface transportation financing option : challenges and opportunities for rural states.

PDFTech ReportUVM TRC Report # 09-003Rural areasGround transportationFinancingFuel taxesRevenuesLiterature reviewsVermontUniversity of Vermont. Transportation Research CenterKenyan, JenniferGlitman, KarenMcRae, GlennUniversity of Vermont. Transportation Research CenterUnited States. Dept. of Transportation. Research and Innovative Technology AdministrationUS Transportation CollectionThe funding of America\ue2\u20ac\u2122s transportation system is a complex process that includes a numberof stakeholders, both private and public. The federal gas tax has been a major contributor tothe funding of transportation projects\ue2\u20ac\u201d even those planned, designed and constructed byindividual states. The cost to maintain, and preserve, the current national transportationsystem is well documented and has eclipsed the amount of funds available under the currentfinancing structure. [1] In short, our transportation system is failing and so is the nationalsystem that funds it. Much of the current literature on transportation funding warns thatfailure to fund transportation infrastructure can lead to major consequences, astransportation plays a significant role in the national, state, and local economies for access tojobs, recreation, education, healthcare, and the shipment of goods. This situation is also truein Vermont where the challenges of small population, small tax base, rural setting and aginginfrastructure have exacerbated the problem