AASHTO to Congress: Fix transportation funding

The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) this week will urge Congress to find a long-term solution to funding transportation.

During AASHTO's annual legislative conference in Washington, D.C., state departments of transportation leaders will attempt to drive home their concern that the federal Highway Trust Fund is "broken" and will run out of money after its current funding law expires in 2020, the AASHTO Journal reported.

The fund will be unable to sustain the current program of highway and transit spending when the Fixing America's Surface Transportation (FAST) Act expires in 2020, AASHTO Executive Director Bud Wright said in the post.

The fund relies on federal gas and diesel tax revenue, which falls short of the spending levels that Congress has authorized, Wright noted.

Finding a long-term, sustainable source of transportation funding is at the top of the association's policy messages for AASHTO and its members, he added.