Tuesday, January 2, 2018

Walker's starved road budget produces annual $673 driver repair tax

Visualizing Walker as Governor Pothole 
Flat tire
is only part of the picture. If Wisconsin motorists are paying an average annual $673 road-repair tax to fix their vehicles, think of what our individual shares will be to repair dangerous bridges, unsafe water systems and other festering hazards in the public sector which Walker intentionally lets slide. 

The most recent (2017) national and state-by-state infrastructure evaluation by the authoritative American Society of Civil Engineers published this devastating analysis which Scott Walker and the GOP should be invited to defend:
Wisconsin Infrastructure Overview
While the nation’s infrastructure earned a “D+” in the 2017 Infrastructure Report Card, Wisconsin faces infrastructure challenges of its own. For example, driving on roads in need of repair in Wisconsin costs each driver $637 per year, and 8.7% of bridges are rated structurally deficient. Drinking water needs in Wisconsin are an estimated $1 billion, and wastewater needs total $6.33 billion. 157 dams are considered to be high-hazard potential. The state’s schools have an estimated capital expenditure gap of $836 million. This deteriorating infrastructure impedes Wisconsin’s ability to compete in an increasingly global marketplace. Success in a 21st century economy requires serious, sustained leadership on infrastructure investment at all levels of government. Delaying these investments only escalates the cost and risks of an aging infrastructure system, an option that the country, Wisconsin, and families can no longer afford.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Gee, we agree with your observation, it's bad. Yet this is common public knowlege that
has been ou there for quite a while. It's great that you're sensitive, but it sure helps us all when you notice these things as they happen.

We all live in a political environment, and have to react to things in real time.

James Rowen said...

I have been covering these issues on this blog for nearly 11 years, and prior to that as a freelance writer for several years. What do you want?

Anonymous said...

Thanks for posting this. I wonder if there is a way to find out if insurance rates have gone up due to the poor roads and increased accidents/car repairs? I have had to swerve to avoid very large, axle breaking potholes and feel lucky not to have hit someone.