In addition to declining gas tax revenues and higher construction costs, New Hampshire DOT is facing a budget crunch due to debt service payments on bonds that funded an expansion of I-93, WMUR reports. In recent years, the state legislature has rejected proposals to shore up transportation funding with mechanisms such as road use charging, fee hikes, or charges that increase with vehicle weight. However, it recently passed House Bill 1631 to establish the Commission to Study Revenue Alternatives to the Road Toll. (The state’s gas tax is dubbed the “road toll.”) As the article points out, several possible solutions already are on the table. “They just involve things many lawmakers don’t want to vote for – namely, new or increased fees or taxes.”
Public
FHWA Quick Relief Funds Flow To States With Hurricane Helene Damage
AASHTO Journal provides a rundown on the tens of millions of dollars in Emergency Relief Program funding flowing to North Carolina, Tennessee, and South Carolina, the state’s hardest hit by Helene.
Among other things, the article notes:
- NCDOT has been given access to $100 million in aid, the largest amount FHWA is providing. In addition to supporting infrastructure repair, the federal funds are helping the state manage a surge in air traffic related to relief delivery and damage assessment in parts of the state where roads and bridges are still inaccessible.
- Much of the funding allocated to North Carolina and Tennessee will be used to restore I-40, a major transportation route between the states, and I-26.
- South Carolina was spared the worst effects of Helene. Federal funds are helping SCDOT mount roadway cleanup and debris clearance in 16 counties.
Transport Topics also covers this story.
USDOT Touts Biden Administration’s Infrastructure Investment And Job Creation Record
According to a USDOT news release issued today, since 2021, the president’s Investing in America Agenda has produced 1.7 million construction and manufacturing jobs and more than 700,000 transportation sector jobs. It has also advanced over 60,000 projects that receive IIJA (Bipartisan Infrastructure Law) funding. Other administration policy accomplishments cited in the release are:
- After subtracting out increases in the residential construction industry, the growth in construction and manufacturing employment since 2021 amounts to 1.3 million jobs, 400,000 of which are union jobs.
- Construction employment has reached its highest level in the 85 years since data collection started. The overall unemployment rate is the lowest in over 50 years.
- The new transportation sector jobs are going to occupations including pilot, port worker, bus driver, and rail engineer.
- Domestic factory construction investment “has nearly tripled.”
- IIJA-funded infrastructure development is “strengthening the American economy by fortifying supply chains and lowering costs, improving America’s global competitiveness, and creating millions of good-paying jobs that bring people into the middle class.”
Canadian Pension Fund Will Acquire Five India Toll Road Concessions
The Economic Times reports, Quebec-based pension fund manager CDPQ is prepared to sign an agreement to acquire five build-operate-transfer toll road assets of Ashoka Concessions, a subsidiary of Ashoka Buildcon LTD. All the facilities “have an average tolling track record of 10 years with established traffic density” and report recent revenue increases. Ashoka Concessions is owned by its parent company and SBI Macquarie. The deal has a reported enterprise value of INR 4,500 crore (approximately USD 535.3 million), acccording to unnamed sources.
Ashoka Concessions is owned by its parent and SBI Macquarie. Spokespersons for CDPQ and Macquarie declined to comment. Ashoka Buildcon did not respond to a comment request.
Outgoing Indonesian President Highlights Nation’s Infrastructure Development Progress
Antara News Service reports, on Friday, outgoing Indonesian President Joko Widodo summarized the infrastructure construction achieved over his ten-year term. His administration’s accomplishments include:
- 2,433 kilometers (1,512 miles) of new toll roads (1,650 kilometers more than were built over the preceding four decades);
- 26 new airports and 25 new seaports, plus the revitalization of 164 existing facilities; and
- rapid transit systems serving metro Jakarta and other cities.
(Although it wasn’t mentioned in the article, Widodo also led the creation of the country’s new capital city, Nusantara, which was the venue for his remarks.)
The president summarized his record in an address to attendees of the annual Kompas100 CEO Forum. This year’s event focused on past achievements and future policies leading to fulfillment of the nation’s Golden Indonesia 2045 Vision.