State roads chief says bridge repair gets the money first
SPRINGFIELD -- Suburban motorists are unlikely to see any relief soon from daily traffic gridlock, the state's top transportation official said Thursday.
New and bigger suburban roadways are a lower priority than making sure the state's bridges remain safe for travel, especially in the wake of last August's Mississippi River Bridge collapse in Minneapolis, said Illinois Department of Transportation Secretary Milton R. Sees.
In announcing $10.9 billion worth of state road and bridge work for the next six years, Sees repeatedly emphasized that the state is increasingly spending its share of road construction dollars on maintenance projects and will be unable to undertake congestion relief projects until new dollars come along.
"We do not have the money left for system expansion," Sees told reporters.
Money for construction and maintenance comes from the state's gasoline tax. But rising gas prices have caused motorists to conserve while at the same time sending the state's own costs skyrocketing.
Sees said the agency expects to see a 1 percent drop this year in the amount it takes in from the gas tax, but like everyone else, it is left paying more for its gasoline and other costs.
In addition, the agency's snow removal costs this winter came in at $89 million, nearly twice what was expected.
"We continue to struggle," he said.
In recent weeks, the agency has had to cut back on cosmetic maintenance such as mowing and road kill pickup.
Earlier this week, in a report to Gov. Rod Blagojevich, former U.S. House Speaker Dennis Hastert and SIU President Glenn Poshard recommended a $31 billion construction spending spree financed with new and bigger casinos, slots at horse tracks and selling off part of the state lottery.
Similar construction plans have been repeatedly rejected at the Capitol in recent years with lawmakers citing either the controversy of expanding gambling or lack of trust with the Blagojevich administration that oversees how all the money is spent.
But even the proposed massive influx wouldn't solve everything, said Sees, pegging the total need statewide at double the $31 billion figure.
"Would I like to have more?" Sees said. "Certainly."