HTF money should not be used for implementation of non-highway transportation projects at this time.

Instead, we should allocate a portion of the Fund to identify and purchase right-of-way corridors for future transit projects that can be developed over the next twenty years. This thinking was employed during the planning of the Century Freeway (I-105), an important part of the 1960’s master plan prepared by Caltrans for the Southern California freeway system, which didn’t open until 1993. Today, the median serves at the main rail corridor for the Metro Green Line that links the airport and downtown Los Angeles. It took time, but it was done once and it was done right.

Therefore, until we know what non-highway transportation projects have the most impact, make the most fiscal sense and can be replicated nationally, we should be prepared for the following:

1. Diminished fuel tax revenues due to decreased driving that continue to hamper the HTF budget in the short term.

2. The HTF allocations should be used to maintain existing highways and bridges while mandating results on efficient roadway construction methods and materials that reduce the effects of vehicle weight and weather.

3. Alternative fuels eventually become readily available that reduce emissions by at least 30% and give the public confidence that driving is affordable and environmentally ‘under control’.

4. All fuels become taxed at the same rate to stabilize the HTF budget.

5. By 2025, the majority of the Boomer Generation is too old to drive and demand alternative non-highway transportation projects to be implemented.

6. Right-of-way corridors that were purchased twenty years earlier using the HTF finally become ‘necessary’ and reduce the impact on the traditional highway system.

7. Younger generations, who made the shift away from driving years before, already live within relative walking distances to fit their lifestyles as telecommuting increases throughout the nation.

Rick Abelson, Director
www.onlinelandplanning.com
www.onlineurbanplanning.com