Roads get massive funding
Transportation was perhaps second only to education in the fight for funding at the Legislature though there was an attempt to dismantle the Utah Transit Authority and give its funding to the state.
Late Wednesday, roads were scheduled to receive the following: $249 million to pay off old construction debts, $30 million to fix state bridges and $40 million for small road fixes.
Those figures do not take into account two big bonding bills that were on-schedule to be approved. HB158 allows the state to issue a $300 million bond to buy land for the Mountain View Corridor. HB314 authorizes the state to issue a $1 billion bond for road fixes across the state.
Yes, $1 billion.
"It truly is remarkable how much transportation is receiving," said Carlos Braceras, deputy director of the Utah Department of Transportation. "It's the most I've ever seen for transportation."
With the $1 billion bond, lawmakers think they can make a big impact on congestion by enhancing and fixing roads throughout the state. The money won't fund the Mountain View Corridor or reconstruction of I-15 in Utah County, but lawmakers said they hope to find money for those roads in later years.
Either way, Rep. Wayne Harper, R-West Valley, said his bill authorizing the $300 million bond would buy all the land for Mountain View in Salt Lake County and save the state millions in future construction costs.
"Every year, property and materials costs go up," Harper said in explanation of his measure, HB158.
To pay for the bond, up to $34 million in tax dollars will be diverted from Salt Lake County. The diversions will come from a $10 vehicle registration fee increase approved last year and two sales tax increases.
The county was initially unhappy with the diversions but reached a compromise with Harper that would give the county some say in how the money is spent.
Another way to save money on Mountain View was approved with the passage of SB240. The bill creates a special fund with $5 million to spend on possible litigation costs. The money, if not used, would go to fund open space preservation.
Other significant road bills include HB108. The measure authorizes UDOT to spend $3.5 million to study east-west transportation in Salt Lake and other urban counties throughout the state.
On the transit side, UTA didn't fare as well. A bill was proposed that would have dismantled the agency and put transit under UDOT's jurisdiction.
HB166 failed in committee; but Harper, who sponsored the measure, said he plans to study the issue during interim. "We will have a good dialogue over the summer about what is in the best interest of the state of Utah," he said.
A second transit bill, SB79, will also be studied this summer. The measure would have required Union Pacific and other big rail companies to work with the state on safety and security.