Conditions and Performance Chapter Listing

Conditions and Performance Home Page

Introduction

Background

Current Conditions and Performance

Projected Conditions and Performance in 2007

Resources Needed to Maintain and Improve the Interstate System

Addressing Interstate System Needs

FAHP Funds Available for Interstate by Category

For purposes of this analysis, available Federal funds, by category, were projected for the 10year period assuming that the FY 2003 funding levels in TEA-21 would be continued through 2007.

System Preservation

The IM Program was authorized specifically to fund preservation of highways on the Interstate System. The primary eligibilities are the resurfacing, restoration, rehabilitation, and reconstruction of existing Interstate System facilities. IM Program funding for the 10year period 1998-2007 is estimated at $47 billion including the Minimum Guarantee funds that are added to the IM Program by law. When matched by State or local governments at a 90 percent Federal share, there would be an estimated $52 billion available for Interstate Maintenance activities for the 10-year period. This would cover the $49.1 billion highway preservation needs under the Cost to Maintain Scenario and fund about 16 percent of the additional highway preservation costs under the Cost to Improve scenario.

Widening

The IM Program funds described above may not be used to add lanes to the Interstate System unless those lanes are for high occupancy vehicles. The prime categories for Interstate widening in the form of single occupant vehicle lanes are the NHS Program and the STP.

Projected authorizations for the NHS Program for the 1998-2007 are $56 billion, including the Minimum Guarantee funds that are added to the NHS Program by law. When matched by State or local governments at an 80 percent Federal share, there would be an estimated $70 billion available for activities eligible under the NHS Program. If about a quarter of the funds were used to fund widening the Interstate, the widening component of the Cost to Maintain scenario would be fully funded at $16.8 billion. With the Interstate System constituting about 29 percent of NHS mileage and serving over half of NHS vehicle miles of travel, the use of one-fourth of the NHS Program funding for Interstate widening seems reasonable.

Q   If we use NHS funds for the widening in the Interstate Cost to Maintain scenario, will other NHS needs be met?

A  Not completely. The remaining $39 billion of NHS funds would not quite cover the $43 billion in highway preservation needs identified in the Cost to Maintain scenario for non-Interstate NHS facilities (based on average annual NHS highway system preservation needs from Exhibit B-10 multiplied by 10 years). If States make system preservation their top priority, none of the system expansion needs in the Cost to Improve scenario could be funded from NHS funds. [See Exhibit A-19].

Exhibit A-19

NHS Funding Shortfall under Interstate Cost to Maintain Scenario

Bridge

The Highway Bridge Replacement and Rehabilitation Program provides funding for the repair or replacement of deficient highway bridges on Federal-aid highways--generally those roads functionally classified as arterials, urban collectors, or rural major collectors. The program may also fund bridge repair or replacement on roads that are generally not eligible for Federal-aid--roads functionally classified as rural minor collectors and local roads. In fact, States are required to spend at least 15 percent of their HBRRP funds (and not more than 35 percent) on such roads. Thus, the HBRRP serves a broader category of highway facilities than most other Federal highway programs.

Projected authorizations for the HBRRP for 1998-2007 are $38 billion, including the Minimum Guarantee funds that are added to the HBRRP by law. When matched by State or local governments at an 80 percent Federal share, there would be an estimated $48 billion available for activities eligible under the HBRRP. The $23.7 billion bridge component of the cost to maintain would require almost half of the available HBRRP funding. As Interstate bridge needs in the Cost to Maintain scenario are about half of total bridge needs (including local roads), States might choose to fully fund the Interstate bridge maintenance needs from HBRRP funds (see Exhibit 7-8).

Summary

The Interstate Needs identified in the Cost to Maintain scenario can be satisfied if 90 percent of IM, one-fourth of NHS, and one-half of HBRRP funds were targeted to this system. If States did so, they would be able to meet the Cost to Maintain scenario on the NHS overall only by supplementing their NHS funds with STP (or non-Federal) funds. Implementation of the Cost to Improve scenario for the Interstate System can be accomplished only at the expense of meeting Cost to Maintain needs on other roads and bridges.