Every time gas prices rise, someone calls for putting a limit on our state’s gas tax. This knee-jerk reaction is short-sighted and will ultimately hurt North Carolina.
The state gas tax has no impact on overall gas prices. Those prices are determined by supply and demand, and what the industry believes the market will bear. This fee will not affect those swings.
Capping the state gas tax will, however, seriously impact the quality of the roads and our bridges. Preventing this vital revenue stream from growing with the population will result in more potholes, more unpaved secondary roads and more delays for critical construction projects across North Carolina.
Closer to hope in Forsyth County, it could mean putting the Business 40 Improvement Project in downtown Winston-Salem on hold. Halting this vital project would not only have serious safety implications, but it would also allow increasing traffic congestion to continue and affect our economic future.
Now is not the time to pause this project. The bridges over Business 40 desperately need to be replaced with stronger, more modern ones. Although they are safe, these bridges were built to handle the traffic that passed over them decades ago — not today’s steady stream of cars and trucks. The bridges are reaching the end of their lifespan, and delaying their replacement will only speed their deterioration.
The pavement on Business 40 that we drive on every day is the original concrete poured during the 1950s. Over the years, we have patched and repaired it, but underneath is aging concrete in serious need of replacement. The exit ramps are also too short, and crashes are common as drivers try to merge into fast-moving traffic, causing the congestion that we know all too well. For safety reasons alone, these improvements cannot wait.
These changes have an effect of about 63 cents per month. That is what the cost of a one-cent increase in North Carolina’s gas tax would equal for the average driver.
In real terms, for less than the price of one Krispy Kreme donut each month, drivers can ensure the Business 40 Improvement Project stays on schedule, the potholes get filled and the dirt roads get paved.
These pennies add up to big money for our transportation system — more than $25 million just in Forsyth County — for a state that maintains more roads than any other state but Texas. Taking that money away will harm all of us. In the short-term, it means more wear and tear on our cars. In the long run, we will be forced to let one of our greatest assets — our transportation network — dwindle. That is not how you attract and retain new companies to our area.
Capping the state gas tax will delay projects, but it will not delay the need for them. If towns and cities want to keep these projects on schedule, they will have to look for ways to come up with the funding necessary to complete them or move them forward through local tax increases or tolls. That means people who may never drive on our roads will be paying to improve them.
North Carolina, through its gas taxes, can maintain our roads with a system that is fair. A user pays system that charges the people who use the roads — residents and out-of-state visitors alike — a fee. A gas cap would only pass the expense of maintaining and improving our transportation system back to the citizens in the form of local taxes. And, those municipalities that could not afford to levy a tax would only be more greatly disadvantaged.
What is fair is letting the drivers who travel on our highways pay to keep them safe, strong and viable every time they fill up at the pump. The system works, and we need to keep it that way. Saving pennies sounds good, until we have to pay dollars to replace them.
By RALPH WOMBLE Guest Columnist
Published: April 17, 2011
