WRAL News published a story yesterday highlighting the urgent need to modernize and diversify how we fund transportation projects in North Carolina.
The story highlights the number of projects that could be shelved because of an outdated revenue model.
“The department, and state leaders sympathetic to its cause, have said for years that transportation has a revenue problem. Gasoline taxes pay for most projects, and the federal government hasn’t raised the rate since 1993. State lawmakers changed North Carolina’s gasoline tax in 2015, allowing it to increase with inflation and the state’s population.
But as more people shift to electric vehicles – and even more fuel-efficient vehicles – those revenues will wane, and the trend is only expected to increase.”
This is another symptom of the problem of our revenue streams being out of date,” said Sen. Mike Woodard, D-Durham, who follows transportation issues. “It makes it clear that we need to modernize the DOT’s revenue, and that’s going to be a heavy lift, but it’s past time to roll up our sleeves.”
We agree with Sen. Woodard and strongly encourage state legislators to “roll-up” their sleeves. We need a modern and diversified revenue model that is fair and equitable to maintain and invest in our state’s transportation infrastructure.
