Roads budget gets pushback from transportation advocates, unions

A representative of the transportation industry is asking why bother even spending money on preliminary work for an expansion of a east-west running of section of Interstate 94 if it’s not clear the state will have money for the project anytime soon.

Craig Thompson, executive director of the Transportation Development Association of Wisconsin, cast a skeptical eye on the $31 million that Gov. Scott Walker’s proposed 2017-19 transportation budget would set aside to design an expansion of I-94 west of Milwaukee’s downtown, as well as acquire right of way and move utilities. That money is only a fraction of what is needed for the $850 million project, which would add lanes in both directions between 16th and 70th streets.

Thompson said Walker’s latest budget proposal gives no indication of where state officials will get that sort of money in coming years. Rather than raise the state’s gas tax, increase borrowing or take other steps to eliminate a nearly $940 spending shortfall in the state’s next budget, Walker is betting state residents would rather put up with delayed projects.

Thompson called the governor’s proposal “short-sighted and troubling.”

His comments were part of the chorus of criticism that greeted the governor’s proposed transportation budget on Thursday. Terry McGowan, president and business manager of the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 139, said the plan would direct spending toward a small portion of the state’s roadways while ignoring some of the biggest, most-traveled corridors.

McGowan said that delaying major projects will only give inflation more time to drive up the cost of needed repairs and expansion work.

“It’s a disservice to Wisconsin residents,” he said.

And the criticism wasn’t just confined to the road-building industry and transportation advocates. Some of Walker’s fellow Republicans chimed in.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and other Republican leaders in the state Assembly released a statement saying the governor’s proposal was “a political solution, not a real solution.”

“It is more conservative to pay for projects today than it is to borrow the money and make our children pay the price,” the Assembly Republicans’ release stated.

Touring the state on Thursday, Walker portrayed his proposal as an attempt to get the state to live within its means. The $500 million he proposes having the state borrow would be the lowest amount for any budget since 2003.

Walker would also cut the allocation for state highways by $447 million. At the same time, it would provide $65 million more for local governments and commit $605 million for county and state road maintenance — about $70 million more than the last two-year budget.

Walker reiterated his oft-made pledge Thursday to not raise the state’s gas tax or other revenue sources without finding a way to reduce other taxes by a similar amount. Where exactly room for such a cut could be found in the state’s tight spending plans has never been made clear.

With no new revenue and a reduced reliance on borrowing, Walker’s proposal would result in delays to a number of so-called mega projects in southeast Wisconsin. Among the projects to be affected would be the currently underway reconstruction of the Zoo Interchange west of Milwaukee’s downtown and the more-than-half-complete expansion of a 35-mile stretch of Interstate 94 running north and south between Milwaukee and the Illinois state line.

Work to expand Interstate 39/90 between Madison and the Illinois state line would meanwhile remain on pace. So would work on Highway 10/441 in the Fox Valley.

Other industry representatives expressed little surprise at the proposal. Pat Goss, executive director of the Wisconsin Transportation Builders Association, noted that Walker had earlier this year called on WisDOT officials to submit a budget proposal that would not raise revenues and would keep bonding at a “reasonable level.”

“Wisconsin’s road needs are well documented and there is clear bipartisan support for a long-term, sustainable solution to address our aging infrastructure,” Goss said.

Mark Gottlieb, WisDOT secretary, released a statement defending the governor’s proposal.

“This budget request provides substantial funding increases for pavement preservation, safety improvements and local aids,” Gottlieb said in the statement. “All of this can be accomplished without any fee or fuel tax increase and with limited borrowing.”

The governor’s proposal is only the first step in a long process. Lawmakers will have an opportunity to modify the plan before a final budget is passed next summer.

Editor’s note: This article has been corrected to state that the Zoo Interchange’s central sections are still scheduled for completion in 2018. Follow @alexzank