A sobering report released last year warned beleaguered drivers using already crowded roads that they face drastic increases in congestion unless billions of dollars in additional funding is committed to repairing and improving highways and bridges.

Unfortunately, the picture may be even bleaker than the one painted by that thinktank report. That’s because that while transportation needs are growing, the state’s the Dedicated Highway and Bridge Trust Fund—is going broke. In fact, by next year, there won’t be enough money in it to pay for routine maintenance, such as repaving roads, let alone for projects that will be required to meet future needs and prevent more crippling congestion.

It’s a nightmare scenario that the new governor, Eliot Spitzer, and the state Legislature will have to confront this year.

Many New Yorkers may rightly wonder how we got to this sorry state of affairs. After all, NewYork drivers pay some of the highest taxes, fees and tolls in the country, and they seem to grow year by year. Some may even recall that not too long ago, voters were asked to approve a multibilliondollar Transportation Bond Act to finance highway and transit improvements.

The truth is that the bond act was a stopgap measure and, even when factoring in its proceeds, it was not enough to fully finance the state’s transportation needs. In fact, it fell hundreds of millions of dollars short. And because of decisions made by the state’s two previous governors, the substantial motor vehicle related taxes and fees paid by New Yorkers are now devoted to paying off growing state debts.

The current predicament dates back to the early 1990s, when the “trust fund” became untrustworthy and the fund was raided to plug general budget shortfalls. Further, “pay as you go” became “borrow all you can” when the state decided to fund its highway upkeep through the issuance of non-voter-approved Thruway Authority bonds, a practice derided by fiscal watchdogs as “back-door borrowing.” As a result of the reliance on borrowing, debt service is now consuming the lion’s share of fees and taxes paid by drivers.

But that’s not all. Even in good financial times, the fund was used and abused by state officials in budget shell games.In 2001, the state began using it to offset routine operational expenses, such as Department of Motor Vehicle stationary costs and snow and ice removal expenses on state roads.

To their credit, state legislators began to wean the state off this “buy now, pay later approach when they shifted some operational expenses back to the state’s General Fund. However, some $200 million in trust fund resources still finance state operational expenses that should be paid for by the state’s general fund.

To save the trust fund from ruin, officials must first fully devote its resources to financing capital construction costs, not day-to-day state operational expenses. Moreover, because the state is now forced to use all of the gas tax and motor vehicle related fees paid by drivers to meet debt service obligations, the state will need to identify new revenue sources to keep the trust fund afloat. To fill the funding gap, elected officials should allocate the revenue the state collects from the state sales taxes on gasoline, roughly $300 million per year, to pay-as-you-go financing for road, bridge and transit projects.

Not long ago, New York's leading transportation experts warned that there would be severe consequences without bold leadership and steady new investments in transportation infrastructure. At stake is nothing less than the economic vitality of the state and the quality of life of its citizens.

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