Addressing Georgia's Transportation Crisis

UPDATE: The Senate is currently moving several bills as a part of my legislative package to improve efficiency and make better use of current transportation dollars. If you would like more information on the legislation, I encourage you to view the bills in their entirety. The bills are: SB 410, SB 411, SB 417 & SB 420. We have also recently passed SR 845 which is a transportation funding measure. A press release regarding the resolution is listed below.

It would not be an exaggeration to say that the transportation crisis in Georgia, especially in metro Atlanta, has reached critical mass. While we have stubbornly adhered to band-aid philosophy, Metro Atlanta’s traffic congestion has become the 4^th worst in our nation. Until we face this fact and make fixing congestion a priority at the highest levels of state government, it is only going to get worse. As a commuter myself, I understand the toll that this is taking on our citizens, and I am no longer content to take a piecemeal approach to fixing congestion.

A recent study put the annual cost of congestion for the Atlanta region at $1.75 billion. This figure includes not only the cost of the extra gasoline wasted while we idle in gridlock but also the lost value of the hours we spend sitting in traffic on our daily commutes – time that could be much better spent being productive at work or relaxing with our families.

As we begin to conceptualize a meaningful transportation solution, we must recognize the fact that traffic congestion is no longer just an Atlanta problem. Congestion in metro Atlanta affects the entire state. When Atlanta’s congestion reputation keeps new businesses from choosing to locate in Georgia (which is happening more often than we would like to admit), the economy of our entire state suffers. When goods are taking longer to get to stores, because trucks have to sit in traffic, the resulting price increases affect our entire state.

The third largest urbanized area in the country, metro Atlanta is the population and economic center of this state. Its current population of over 4 million is expected to swell to 7 million by 2030. Thus, any comprehensive, statewide transportation plan must embrace this reality and have as a key component addressing metro Atlanta’s traffic issues. This is not to diminish the impact that congestion has on other metropolitan areas of our state or to say that we should ignore the concerns of rural Georgia. We must, however, utilize our scarce and ever-shrinking pool of financial resources in the most efficient way possible.

Unfortunately, there is no silver bullet to solving the transportation crisis. So what can we do? The evidence is clear that we must challenge our traditional notions of transportation funding and delivery of projects if we want to meet the needs of our state in the next 20 to 30 years.

The Georgia Department of Transportation predicts a $7.7 billion funding shortfall over the next six years if we don’t start taking steps now to more effectively fund transportation in this state.

Currently, our state receives much of its funding for road projects from the state motor fuel tax, a revenue source that is becoming ever smaller as vehicles become more fuel efficient. Additionally, the motor fuel tax was never indexed for inflation, so while fuel tax revenues appear to have risen in nominal terms, revenues have actually decreased when adjusted for inflation – as much as 52.2% between 1980 and 2003, according to one study. Combine this fact with an inefficient federal funding formula that limits the ability of the state DOT and government to spend highway funds where they are needed most, and you can easily see why the traditional way we fund transportation is woefully inadequate to deal with the 21^st-century crisis we are facing today.

A potential solution is tapping into private revenue sources through the use of concessions and public-private initiatives. There has already been success in other parts of the country in the use of managed lanes, which provide riders with a guaranteed trip time in return for a fee or toll. California and Minnesota have successfully done this, and many other states are beginning to look at variable pricing as a way to address revenue shortfalls as well as to give its citizens options. Managed lanes are just one example of how market-based solutions can help control congestion while also providing more reliable access for mass transit, such as buses, to move in and out of the city. There are of course other possibilities that we should consider as well, but the main point is that we need a paradigm shift in the way we think about transportation funding.

Funding is only part of the picture, however. We also have to get road projects completed quicker. The average project currently takes more than 7 years to complete. Almost 5 years of this time is spent on preconstruction – engineering and re-engineering the project, acquiring right of way and doing environmental studies. This is before any contract is signed or any dirt moves. Delays for various reasons are a constant struggle within the DOT, and in the days of skyrocketing right-of-way and construction materials costs, these delays can easily send the cost of a project soaring. At the risk of sounding clichéd, time actually is money, and we need to cut through the traditional bureaucracy of the Department of Transportation and identify ways to improve efficiency.

To be sure, this crisis did not develop overnight, and we are unfortunately not going to get out of it overnight. But we have to establish a clear vision now, and that will be our goal over the next few months. In conjunction with the work of the Joint Transportation Funding Study committee, we hope to begin formulating a plan in the upcoming months to establish that vision and to take a significant first step towards meaningful, long-term reform. As we work through this process, we will continue to update this website with our progress, and I hope you will check back often to stay informed. We encourage all stakeholders in this process to reach out to us with their input. The people of Georgia take the transportation problem seriously, and they deserve a state government that takes finding a solution just as seriously.

RECENT PRESS RELEASES REGARDING TRANSPORTATION:

9/25/07 - Lt. Governor and Speaker of the House Discuss Initial Direction of Transportation Reform Package

9/18/07 - Cagle: Study Underscores Need for Major Transportation Initiatives

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