EDITORIAL

Finding a path forward on roads, bridges vital to RI

Posted 6/23/15

Rhode Island’s roadways – particularly its bridges – desperately need repair. That is beyond dispute.

How to go about addressing what has become a dire situation, however, remains very much …

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EDITORIAL

Finding a path forward on roads, bridges vital to RI

Posted

Rhode Island’s roadways – particularly its bridges – desperately need repair. That is beyond dispute.

How to go about addressing what has become a dire situation, however, remains very much unsettled. And lawmakers may adjourn this week from their current session without deciding upon a course of action.

Several weeks ago, Gov. Gina Raimondo, alongside House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello and Senate President Teresa Paiva Weed, unveiled the “RhodeWorks” proposal, seeking to borrow $700 million for a 10-year bridge and road repair project. The institution of new tolls on large commercial trucks, the officials said, would help offset the costs of the borrowing.

Action, they said, was essential, given Rhode Island’s unfortunate distinction as having the worst bridges in the country. Moving forward, they said, would allow the state to leverage federal resources and address the direst needs, including the 6/10 Connector.

The proposal was also presented as a piece of the broader economic development picture, as it would put thousands in the construction sector to work while making the state more attractive to future development.

The tolls, unsurprisingly, have proven highly controversial, and the proposal has since been scaled back in an effort to garner the needed support. The latest incarnation of the plan, backed by the governor and the Senate, includes a multi-million dollar package of tax relief and grants for affected companies registered in Rhode Island.

A group of Republican lawmakers brought forward an alternative plan seeking to budget $60 million toward bridge and road repairs in the coming year – and, hopefully, to do the same for the next 12 years – but that proposal was not formally considered as part of the budget approved in the House last week.

Where do we stand, then? The General Assembly could adjourn Wednesday or Thursday, and while debate on a transportation infrastructure fix continues, there seems no clear path to resolution in the short term. Ultimately, a special session may be called weeks from now to deal with this matter, and with other hot-button issues such as the proposed Providence ballpark and legislation seeking to rein in charter schools.

There is no simple solution to our roadway woes. Critics are right to be leery of the borrowing costs associated with Raimondo’s plan, given the state’s fiscal constraints. The idea of allocating money from each year’s budget would seem a preferable approach, but may not be realistic given the scope of the resources required to effectively address the infrastructure problem.

New tolls on large trucks present a similar conundrum. These vehicles are clearly responsible for the lion’s share of wear and damage to our bridges and roads, and as such, asking the companies behind them to contribute more toward the infrastructure fix seems very much justified. Yet concerns over the economic impact give pause, particularly since it will ultimately be workers, taxpayers, and consumers who are most impacted. Worries over a “slippery slope” effect – of the tolls being expanded over time – are also not entirely unreasonable, even if such a development is nearly unimaginable in the current political climate.

Perhaps there is a middle way, a combination of borrowing and redirected spending that would allow for meaningful progress. Perhaps the case for action can be made strongly enough that borrowing is deemed justified as part of a broader economic development strategy.

Having the issue at the forefront of public discourse is a positive step. But every day without action increases both future costs and the risk of a tragedy.

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