Each day, Mainers drive over crumbling roads, bridges and dilapidated transportation infrastructure. At this time of year, we’re reminded of that fact each and every time we wince as we drive over unforgiving and seemingly endless potholes on our roads. This reality not only is hard on our vehicles but undermines our economy, slows job creation and, even worse, could put the safety of Maine people at risk.
We can’t expect a vibrant future for Maine’s economy without taking care of our roads and bridges. After all, our transportation infrastructure allows us to move people and goods, driving our economy forward. A recent report by engineers at the Maine Department of Transportation, however, found that state government has been spending just half of what is necessary to maintain the safety and integrity of state bridges.
It is clear we are not keeping up with the needs of our transportation system, and the report’s recommendation to double funding just to maintain our bridges underscores that.
In fact, that same report includes statistics that show Maine’s number of “structurally deficient” bridges — bridges with deteriorated or damaged load-carrying elements — is rising while the rest of the nation’s numbers improve. This means more bridges are closed to heavier vehicles, causing costly detours for businesses. We are missing an important opportunity to extend the lifespan of these bridges and save money in the long run.
There is no question we should be doing more, but simply reallocating funds from other areas of transportation to bridge maintenance would be a shortsighted solution.
Department of Transportation Commissioner David Bernhardt came before the Legislature’s Transportation Committee, on which I serve as House chair, in March to brief lawmakers on the Keeping Our Bridges Safe report’s findings.
Bernhardt’s briefing to our committee represented part of our state’s larger problem of adequately funding our transportation infrastructure. This area of the state budget, the highway fund, suffers from declining gas tax revenues that have been falling as the fuel efficiency of today’s vehicles improves.
The good news is that Republicans, Democrats and independents agree this is an issue we must come together to address. Now we need to identify solutions we can agree on.
I am introducing several bills this session that offer strategies to address our infrastructure funding shortfall. One of these measures would authorize a bond issue to invest $190 million in our highways and bridges, as well as in marine transportation, aviation, freight and passenger rail and public transit. These funds would address the most immediate needs of our transportation system, providing a crucial boost to our economy. The bill also would leverage an estimated $290 million in federal and other matching funds, multiplying the value of our investment by 150 percent.
To address the future of transportation funding, I also am sponsoring a measure that would create a commission dedicated to finding a sustainable transportation funding model that would allow us to make necessary investments in the future in an effective, efficient and sustainable manner. I am pleased to have bipartisan support for these bills.
The bottom line is that Maine can’t afford to continue putting off investments in our infrastructure. Our roads and bridges will continue to get worse until policymakers come together to work on a bipartisan solution Republicans, Democrats and independents alike can get behind. Until then our economy will continue to suffer for it. I am hopeful that this is the beginning of a more comprehensive conversation about Maine’s transportation needs — for public safety and for our economic future.
Rep. Andrew McLean, D-Gorham, is the House chair of the Legislature’s Transportation Committee. He is serving his second term in the Maine House and represents parts of Gorham and Scarborough.