Boost investment in infrastructure

Every day the deteriorating transportation infrastructure that threatens our safety and economy becomes more visible. As more potholes form, more bridges inch closer to being closed. The longer we delay, the higher the costs of fixing these roads, bridges and our transit infrastructure will be.

The time is now for a new state capital bill to improve the transportation infrastructure we have in Illinois. Any new capital bill must end the trend of diverting money for transportation to everything other than transportation. Without this reform, any other actions will only add to the problem. It is also important for any new capital bill to have pay-as-you-go provisions to ensure that ongoing maintenance and repair of our transportation infrastructure has a steady stream of investment.

Finally, we need to increase our investment. Virginia is just one state where they have already raised taxes for transportation — under a Republican governor. There are numerous options to fund transportation, including increasing current gas taxes, charging by vehicle miles traveled, new sales taxes, and new registration fees as well as better leveraging public private partnerships. We need to determine what option or options work for Illinois.

The Transportation for Illinois Coalition continues to work with legislators in Springfield to address this problem. Each of us paying a little more each year to provide hundreds of millions of dollars each year to fix this problem is an investment we can make with returns we can see. Let’s get serious about this debate before it’s too late.

Benjamin Brockschmidt

Executive director

Infrastructure Council

Illinois Chamber of Commerce