The American Association of State Highway and Transportation (AASHTO) released a report Monday - Transportation Reboot: Unlocking Gridlock  - which states that demand for automobile travel is far outpacing the available infrastructure on the nation's roadways.  The report expressed the need for an increase in new federal highway dollars to meet future needs and avoid a dangerous level of gridlock.

The report states that a balanced approach is necessary to meet future mobility needs, including preserving current infrastructure, improving system performance and adding substantial capacity to highways, transit, freight rail and intercity passenger rail. Rail improvements alone cannot meet the significant transportation needs of our nation.

“Expanding the ability of the transportation system to meet the needs of the traveling public is critical to the health of our economy and the quality of life of our citizens,” said John Horsley, executive director of AASHTO. Horsley continued that expanding highway capacity will be a principle element of what is required to meet future mobility needs (since 95 percent of passenger travel in America is made by car, motorcycle and truck; and 93 percent of freight by value moves on our highways), though it is not the only component required. 

More than 100 urgently needed road projects were identified, including U.S. 290 in Houston.

Some key conclusions:

• Population increases are putting strains on existing transportation networks,and are increasing the need for new capacity.
• Investment in transportation and capacity has been on the decline; significant investment is needed to keep America moving.
• Nationwide, congestion is costing more than four billion hours of annual travel delay and 2.9 billion gallons of wasted fuel.
• Even at the 2009 reset level, drivers with a 30 minute commute still lose 22 hours (nearly three full work days) annually sitting in traffic, according to the newly released INRIX National Traffic Scorecard.
• The Interstate Highway System is the backbone of the nation’s transportationnetwork and must continue to play a strategic role.
• The results of inaction are clear. Unless the nation creates adequate highway, transit, and railroad capacity, the nation’s economy could slow to a standstill.

AASHTO recommends that funding for the overall highway program be increased to $375 billion over the next six years.  A significant portion of these funds should be provided to build needed highway capacity.

For more information, check out the following articles:

• Star-Telegram: Less federal highway funds may mean more-crowded roads nationwide
• Dallas Morning News: Should Washington keep new highways the top priority for transportation spending?