The 246 state road and bridge projects contain “significant maintenance work” for the state’s transportation network, according to a joint announcement from Lt. Gov. Tina Smith and MnDOT Commissioner Charlie Zelle.
Smith said transportation revenue forecasts show a shortfall is coming for MnDOT in 2018 resulting in a 45 percent reduction of funding for preservation and maintenance.
“What we need now is a long-term vision for Minnesota’s transportation system,” Zelle said. “It’s all in the arithmetic. Our needs are outpacing our revenue projections. If we don’t increase the revenue, we cannot plan for good, capital investments. Our system will continue to degrade and not provide the necessary support our economy needs.”
Zelle’s agency says more than half of the state’s roads are more than 50 years old and 40 percent of the bridges are more than 40 years old. MnDOT further estimates that 20 percent of roads will exceed their useful life by 2019, with close to 40 percent reaching that state in 10 years.
Gov. Mark Dayton and Smith are proposing new funding that would invest $1.6 billion more in the Corridors of Commerce program to provide MnDOT the revenue to expand roadways.
