In its recently released “28th Annual Highway Report,” the Reason Foundation ranked Idaho 15th in the nation when it comes to cost effectiveness and road conditions, but its authors cautioned officials when it comes to spending on roads and bridges.
The Reason Foundation, a libertarian think tank based out of Washington D.C., has a long history of providing key insights and recommendations on transportation spending at all levels of government. Its latest report found that, overall, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming ranked well when it came to overall road spending, safety and traffic congestion (15th, 16th, and 12th, respectively). Washington state, on the other hand, ranked 47th.
Yet, despite the positive news in some states, transportation officials still have more work to do. Some key areas lawmakers and transportation officials should continue to focus on:
Disbursements & Spending
The Reason Foundation noted both Idaho and Washington’s poor rankings when it comes to spending on roads and bridges in 2022. In addition, all four states analyzed had above-average disbursements per lane-mile. While disbursements can be tricky due to the long timelines of projects, the authors urge officials to “focus on reducing capital-bridge disbursements and other disbursements.”
In short, officials should watch spending carefully as it relates to capital expansion and maintenance in their eight- and twelve-year improvement plans. Project delivery methods, like public-private partnerships, along with the latest technologies (e.g. drones, probe analytics) can help reduce costs and improve the life of the bridge or roadway
Performance
Performance is best measured in terms of delay, which is the difference between observed travel times during the peak periods and free-flow speeds. As more businesses, people and freight move within an urban area, drivers experience increased delay, leading to lost time, wasted fuel, and excess emissions. The report pulls data from the INRIX Global Traffic Scorecard, which notes that commute delays in the Boise area cost the typical driver $340 per year in lost time.
Pavement & Bridge Condition
Structurally deficient bridges are bridges that are in poor condition and in need of rehabilitation. While both Idaho and Washington have a lower share of deficient bridges than Montana and Wyoming, more than five percent of bridges in these states are still at risk.
Pavement condition is another measure of how state assets are maintained. In urban areas, Idaho and Montana ranked well, while Washington and Wyoming tended to have rougher roads.
The authors did note improvements in arterial road conditions compared to the prior year rankings.
Safety/Fatalities
Safety should be a top priority of transportation officials across the country. As measured by fatality rates, Idaho ranked as 5th best in urban areas and 23rd on rural freeways, with fatality rates of 0.65 and 1.17 fatalities per 100 million VMT, respectively. Montana ranked far lower, with 1.44 and 1.69 fatality rates, respectively, the bottom 10 in each category. Fatality rates on Washington state’s urban and rural highways were 1.02 and 1.05 fatalities per 100 million VMT, respectively, while Wyoming’s urban and rural highways registered rates of 0.81 and 1.54, respectively.
While the latest Reason report highlighted some positive shifts in road condition and congestion rankings, other areas, such as spending and safety, should garner extra attention from transportation officials and lawmakers. Officials should look at establishing performance-based benchmarks to ensure the road system is adequate to handle the influx of people, businesses and economic activity coming to the region. MSPC has outlined nine performance measures lawmakers could put in place to ensure the movement of people and goods continues throughout the Mountain States.