Tired of Waiting on States, Counties Fund Roads on Their Own

Increasing local investment in transportation projects is part of a long-term trend away from traditional state sources. Political leaders in Virginia and Maryland, as well as in several other states across the country, plan to fund highways with tolls or through the private sector. Major projects such as expanding the Capital Beltway, for example, will be financed largely through a combination of the two.

A recent study required by the federal government of how the Washington region plans to pay for road and transit improvements through 2030 illustrates a clear change. Three years ago, the study showed state governments, including the District, paying for 43 percent of transportation funding, with local governments contributing 11 percent. But a revision of the plan released last month showed the state share plummeting to 32 percent and the local share increasing to 17 percent. The same analysis showed toll revenues rising from 1 percent to 7 percent. The federal contribution held steady at 27 percent.

"This is a harbinger," said Ronald F. Kirby, transportation planning director for the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, which conducted the study. "It's a recognition that the states can't keep up. So Plan B is tolls and local bonds. We better get used to that because that's the way it's heading."

In Virginia, the state government is supposed to pay for and maintain almost every road in the commonwealth. Under Virginia's six-year construction plan, the state is spending $795 million less than last year as more money is shifted to road maintenance. Legislators debated dozens of plans to increase transportation funding for most of 2006, including during a special session of the General Assembly in September, but they couldn't agree on any.

In Maryland, highways and major roads are built and maintained by officials in Annapolis, with local governments paying for local streets. Its six-year plan for new transportation projects is also shrinking -- $500 million less is included than six years ago.

Maryland Transportation Secretary Robert L. Flanagan said the state came up with a plan two years ago to add $238 million a year for projects. But he said there is a lot of "catch-up" to be done on roads and rail.

"We can talk philosophically about what is the state's responsibility versus what is a local responsibility," he said. "As long as we're working together, it's a better approach."

In the Washington region, fast-growing Prince William is becoming the king of road-building, doing it on a bigger scale than any jurisdiction. When the state continued to delay money for the Prince William Parkway, for example, the county built the four-lane highway itself. To keep up with the work, the county created a transportation department this year.

Craig S. Gerhart, the county's executive, said political leaders are not happy to spend the money, but they came to realize that Richmond was not going to come through.

"People can argue about a lot of things, but at the end of the day it takes money to build roads, and they don't have any money," he said. "We can't be successful as a community with a failed transportation network."