Colorado and the Stimulus: An Appraisal of Transportation Spending
2009-06-29
Executive Summary
Executive Summary
June 29th marks the 120th day for states to commit at least 50% of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) transportation funds. This report reviews the use of the Surface Transportation Program (STP) funds which were flexible dollars that states could choose how invest and compares them to the goals laid out for the ARRA and the current infrastructure needs of the state. The data is based on the commitments for STP funds posted to the US Department of Transportation’s (USDOT) ARRA Section 1511 Web page.
Nine Goals for Transportation Funding - The ARRA and federal officials outlined nine goals for ARRA funds: 1. Create and save jobs 2. Fix our crumbling infrastructure 3. Modernize the transportation system 4. Promote ling-term economic growth 5. Improve public transportation 6. Reduce energy dependence 7. Cut greenhouse gas emissions 8. Not contribute to additional sprawl 9. Reduce commute times and congestion
Urgent Repair and Maintenance Needs in Colorado - According to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Organizations, 56% of Colorado’s roads are not in “good” condition. - This costs drivers on average an additional $292 per year from damage to tires, suspension and reduced fuel efficiency. - In addition, US DOT reports that Colorado has 242 “structurally deficient” interstate and state bridges. - Maintaining our roads before they deteriorate saves us money in the long run. Every $1 spent maintaining a road saves $6-14 to rebuild one that deteriorates.
New Roadway Capacity Least Effective Option for STP Funds Based on the Nine Goals and Immediate Need. - In general, public transportation and road and bridge repair produce 31% and 16% more jobs respectively than construction of new roads and bridges. - Economic rate of return for new-capacity road projects have been dropping for several years.
Major Findings: 1. Colorado made major progress on repairing roads and bridges spending two-thirds of their STP money on those types of projects 2. Colorado was a leader among states in public transportation spending with 8% of their money going to those projects. Only Delaware, Iowa and Oregon have spent a larger percentage of their money on public transportation. 3. Colorado spent one-fifth of their money on new highway capacity. This money would have been better used on the backlog of repair and maintenance projects or on public transportation. If Colorado took the approximately $84.2 million they spent on new highway capacity and invested all of it in additional road and bridge repair or public transportation, they would have created an estimated 181 and 433 jobs respectively. In addition, they would have made more progress on the nine goals for the ARRA money. 4. Colorado spent 4% of their STP funds on non-motorized projects which includes bicycle and pedestrian projects, trails and streetscapes. This is slightly above the national average of 2.8%. 5. Overall accountability for results is weak. There is no clear articulation for what project portfolios should accomplish, no methods identified for evaluating projects against these goals or against one another, and few repercussions for achieving or failing to achieve these goals. 6. There are some transparency challenges. In many cases it is very difficult for an average citizen to be able to understand what his or her tax dollars are really buying.
Breakdown of STP spending in Colorado as of June 15, 2009
