Problem is much deeper than potholes

It's tough enough having to drive on roads full of snow and ice.

But now we also have to contend with a byproduct of the wear-and-tear on our roads brought on by winter -- potholes.

The conditions are ideal for potholes. The thawing and freezing turns little cracks in the roads into axle-smashing caverns. The constant spreading of salt to provide traction on the roads isn't helping matters, either.

Those potholes not only give you a jolt when you hit them. They can also deliver a big hit to the pocketbook. Replacing damaged tires, repairing bent rims and realigning wheels costs hundreds of dollars.

Meanwhile, local, state and federal departments of transportation are spending tens of millions of dollars repairing potholes.

And, we wonder, isn't there a better way of building roads so that they aren't scarred by pothole pockmarks winter after winter?

But the problem is that many of our roads aren't in the best shape to withstand the winter assault on them. They have been patched and repaired many times, when what really needs to be done is to substantially overhaul the roads or build new ones.

Yet it's been estimated that up to $10 billion is needed to fix and build new highways and bridges in Illinois.

And as we reported shortly after the Aug. 1, 2007, collapse of the bridge in Minneapolis, Illinois has 340 bridges rated "structurally deficient" and 725 rated "functionally obsolete" in Cook and the collar counties alone.

So where is the money going to come from to bring roads and bridges up to standard?

Well, a good deal of it will come from the federal government. But money Washington has set aside for road and bridge work in Illinois won't be released until the state legislature and the governor agree on a capital improvement bill that provides so-called matching funds. This state financial commitment is required for release of those federal funds.

At the end of January, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and other members of the state's congressional delegation reminded the governor and legislature of what's at stake. Illinois is to receive a huge boost in federal highway improvement funds -- a 33 percent increase over previous years -- but only if the state follows through with matching funds.

The delegation also notes that a road construction program would provide many good paying jobs in Illinois at a time when the economy may be sinking into recession. By the governor's own estimate, a state capital improvement program would support an estimated 694,000 jobs statewide.

It may be the freeze-and-thaw cycle that is opening up potholes. But it is a cycle of talk and no action that is holding up repair of roads and all its economic benefits. It's time to move on a state capital improvement bill.