State funding creates delays for local road projects

By Hannah Wever
Review Staff Writer

Published: March 27, 2008

Next year’s plans to fill potholes, resurface roads, and paint stripes on some of Orange County back roads have been put on hold, according to VDOT Resident Engineer Don Gore, because there’s not enough money in the state’s projected revenue to pay for some secondary road projects.
“For the fiscal year 2009, secondary road construction funds are being cut by 44 percent,” Gore explained to county officials at an Orange County Board of Supervisors meeting last week. “What that means is that we’re not going to get as much secondary road construction as we have on the plans,” he added.
“We are anticipating reductions in the respective state formula allocations averaging 44 percent per year for primary, secondary and urban system construction,” VDOT spokesman Lou Hatter confirmed.
Hatter said the fund cuts that will affect plans in the 2009-2014 six-year plan are due to a combination of repealed legislation and the struggling economy.
“Since the last year’s Six-Year Improvement Program was developed, the economy has dramatically slowed.  Transportation revenue sources have been affected by the economic downturn and estimates of future revenues were reduced in the November 2007 and the February 2008 revenue forecast updates that are produced by the Virginia Department of Taxation.  The effect of the repeal of the abusive driver fees by the General Assembly is also reflected in the revised revenue estimate,” Hatter said.
“Construction funding provided through the state allocation formula to the highway construction districts, the counties and other localities for primary, secondary and urban construction programs have been significantly reduced,” he added. 
What that means here in Orange is that some secondary road projects will be abandoned-at least temporarily, according to Gore.
“Some projects will be taken off the plan,” he said. “We’ll be reducing the plan to correspond with the funds they said we’re going to get.”
And it seems any last-minute appeals to VDOT for work on secondary roads won’t be considered anytime soon.
“They’re telling me, ‘Do not add any additional roads on the plan’,” Gore said.
“The focus will be on completing the projects already in the program, and not on adding more projects to the program,” Hatter explained.
Orange County Board of Supervisors Chairman Mark Johnson said the county’s six-year plan won’t be reprioritized or altered in light of the funding changes. But for work on some roads, the timetable for completion will be extended.
“"We’re just going to stay with the six-year plan we have. We’re going to keep working on the roads in the order they’re currently in. Whatever’s at the top of the list will stay at the top of the list,” Johnson said.
“Assuming federal revenues remain as forecasted, funding for maintenance, interstate construction and other dedicated federal and state programs should remain constant.  VDOT will work together with the Commonwealth Transportation Board and our local partners in cities and counties to address this fiscal challenge,” Hatter said.
“It is too early to know the impact of the reductions on individual projects.  Those effects will be determined during the development of the FY 2009 - 2014 program this spring. The Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB) and our local partners will have to carefully consider their project priorities in light of the fiscal reality of having less money available. Localities must determine which secondary and urban highway system projects will be affected, and the CTB must make decisions about the primary system projects,” Hatter said.