This morning the Houston Chronicle points out a national dilemma surrounding Hybrid and fuel-efficient cars: they're great for the environment, but harmful to our roads.

Hybrid cars may come in an eco-friendly, money-saving, government tax break package, but they are doing more than their fair share of harm to the roads they're driven upon by not paying for it.

According to the Chronicle story, every time you fill your gas tank, 18.4 cents per gallon in federal taxes is sent to Washington to be redistributed to the states for road construction and maintenance. Twenty cents per gallon in state taxes is retained by Texas, of which five cents goes directly to education and four cents goes to agencies such as the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), leaving only 11 cents per gallon to fund all the road projects the federal government doesn't pay for.

Originally, these taxes were intended to compensate the state for the wear-and-tear your car caused to the roads, but the taxes were not indexed to inflation and over time have lost about half of their buying power. 

With more Texans driving less, and more people opting to buy Hybrid and other more fuel-efficient cars, state funding for road construction is quickly being depleted. Some experts estimate Texas will run out of money to build new roads as early as 2012.

Texans for Safe Reliable Transportation has consistently advocated for all increased transportation funding options including gas tax increases, public and private investment, bonds, and direct user fees such as toll roads and vehicle-miles-traveled taxes. With Texas' road funding shortfall looming, we hope you will work with us to advocate for workable solutions that will keep Texans moving and our economy growing.

Downside of Eco-Friendly Car: Drain on Taxes for Road Work Houston Chronicle by Carolyn Feibel