Focus On The Future (Day One)

This week I’m lucky to be attending the annual Focus on the Future conference in San Francisco.

This is a conference organized by the Self-Help Counties Coalition, and brings together people from the private sector and public sector, representing the 24 counties in California that have dedicated sales tax measures that fund transportation. It is always a great event that attracts decision makers and consultants from across the state, and it is 100% focused on transportation, which always excites us transportation geeks!

For the opening keynote we welcomed Senator Jim Beall, who spoke about the recently approved SB 1 and a broader discussion of taxes funding transportation infrastructure in California. This bill will provide approximately 10 years of funding to address the estimated $78 billion in unfunded maintenance backlog on the state’s roadway system.

Mr. Beall noted that he developed this bill and plan because “we can’t live with the ‘do nothing’ solution – it is the ‘do nothing,  be stupid’ solution.” Mr. Beall pointed out that every year we wait we will add $4 billion in more maintenance.

He also made a lot of other great comments that I am 100% in support of, including hammering on the point that the SB 1 revenue source runs out in 10 years. There is a sense of urgency for keeping these projects on schedule, as he proclaimed:

“YOU HAVE TO FOCUS ON THE MAINTENANCE BACKLOG. If the maintenance backlog is not dealt with, the miles-per-gallon efficiency of vehicles will further erode the money available. So the strategic solution is to focus on maintenance backlog.”

Mr. Beall noted that this maintenance backlog is significantly impacting mobility for all people in California. He cited the example of a bridge on I-10 between Palm Springs and Phoenix that collapsed in a flood, and two years later the bridge is still being repaired. Part of the change that needs to occur is in the culture of our public agencies charged with repairing and maintaining this infrastructure. He cited Caltrans specifically, saying “the agency needs it; he’d like to see the agency grow.”

The SB 1 funding also covers more than maintenance costs, and Mr. Beall noted that he would still like to see the overall focus be on maintenance. For example, he said the bill provides R&D funding for universities. Rather than research flying cars or some other advanced technology, Mr. Beall said he would like them to focus on simple stuff, like better glue to keep infrastructure attached to the road.

Nothing is forever

Mr. Beall reminded us that SB 1 is temporary. He told the attendees to prepare for another vote in June of 2018, where California voters will get a chance to decide on an amendment to the State Constitution to ensure future tax funding from SB1 will be guaranteed to be spent only on transportation. The June 2018 measure will ensure that SB 1 transportation revenues will not be allowed to be borrowed or changed to any other purpose, because any change will mean increased costs of deferred maintenance on the order of BILLIONS of dollars each year we delay.

Closing the keynote, Mr. Beall highlighted that the recent success of SB 1 had major political dynamics. The historic victory came at a cost  –  Senator Newman facing a recall over his vote for the bill. If the recall is successful, it will set California back many many decades. So Mr. Beall told the audience that we need to do our best repaving and repairing the streets to demonstrate accountability to the public. This will be crucial to make sure this new funding stream becomes a permanent funding stream.

This opening speech resonated with me. As I’ve written about before, keeping our roads and transportation infrastructure in a state of good repair is critical for the safety of all people using the roads  –  and not just the vehicles on the roads, but people walking, biking, taking transit, or doing anything else. Furthermore, investing in ongoing maintenance is crucial given the rapid deployment of connected and autonomous vehicles.

So kudos to Senator Beall for making his speech today and taking the tough political stance to support a tax to fund transportation.

To quote his closing statement, “Now let’s go fix the roads!”

About the Author

Sam Morrissey previously served as an associate vice president at Iteris, leading its Mobility Services group.