Permanent, Sustainable Plan to Fund Colorado Roads and Bridges Unveiled at State Capitol, Would Inject Billions To Address State’s Growing Transportation Needs
(DENVER) — Calling the plan a “permanent and sustainable solution to Colorado’s transportation funding crisis,” business, civic and elected leaders today praised the introduction of the Fix Colorado Roads Act – a framework that would inject roughly $3.5 billion into road and bridge projects across the state without raising taxes.
The Fix Colorado Roads Act (SB 210) — sponsored by Senate Transportation Committee Chair Randy Baumgardner and House Majority Leader Brian Del Grosso — would create a robust funding and finance program through the renewal of existing transportation bonds, coupled with a state commitment to dedicate a small portion of the CDOT budget for road and bridge projects. The $3.5 billion Fix Colorado Roads bond program, which requires no new taxes, would support important road projects statewide. Among the signature expansion projects included would be:
- I-70 West: ROD projects throughout the corridor plus seed funding for the next phase of expansion
- North I-25: State Highway 14 south to US 36
- South I-25:Monument Hill to Castle Rock and the New Pueblo Freeway
The Fix Colorado Roads bond program would be referred to voters by the Legislature for the November 2016 ballot.
“We simply cannot continue to be stuck in neutral on transportation funding in Colorado,” said David May, president and CEO of the Fort Collins Area Chamber of Commerce and the convener of the Fix North I-25 Business Alliance “Our population is growing, our economy is expanding and everyone agrees that quality roads and bridges are the key to prosperity and our world-class quality of life. It’s time to come together to put the issue of transportation funding in the legislative fast lane where it belongs.”
Colorado devotes NO permanent and reliable general fund dollars to transportation – a reason why the transportation system is aging, overburdened, and an increasing limiting factor to economic growth.
Polling by the Northern Colorado Legislative Alliance showed that 90 percent of Coloradans believe that the state’s roads and bridges are in dire need of repair, and large majorities want transportation funding to be a priority for the state.
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NOTE: A comprehensive list of the projects to be funded by the Fix Colorado Roads Act is available upon request