RIDOT Director discusses transportation project funding methods.
Press Release Summary:
Two-Minute State DOT Update Video features Michael Lewis, director of Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) and chairman of AASHTO Subcommittee on Construction. He discuses steps Rhode Island is taking to fund essential transportation projects during lean economic times as well as what else must be done. Other talking points include steps being taken to ensure investments made by RIDOT are used efficiently and effectively.
Original Press Release:
Innovative Finance, Asset Management are Critical Tools in Lean Times, Says DOT Director
Washington, D.C. - In a new Two-Minute State DOT Update video, Michael Lewis, director of the Rhode Island Department of Transportation and chairman of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials Subcommittee on Construction, discuses some of the steps Rhode Island is taking to fund essential transportation projects during lean economic times.
"In little Rhode Island, we have many of the same issues other states all across the United States are experiencing, "Lewis said. "Always overriding everything is finding adequate funding resources. I don't think there's enough money in the world to solve the nation's infrastructure problems right now. That's something we need to keep working on. And we're constantly looking for a new financing model that can sustain our programs over the long haul."
Lewis says RIDOT has used innovative financing tools such as TIFIA loans, GARVEE bonds, and performance measures to successfully to support critical construction projects such as the relocation of a major section of Interstate 95/195 in the heart of Providence with very little disruption to traffic. The state also has undertaken a freight rail improvement project that has lead to the expansion of commuter rail service from Boston to Providence and points further south including a direct connection to T.F. Green Airport - the shortest rail to air connection in the country.
In testimony last week on surface transportation reauthorization before the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Lewis said that despite the gains made by RIDOT, "Decades of underinvestment in infrastructure and maintenance have lead to a downward spiral in highway infrastructure in Rhode Island."
Lewis testified that a 2008 Rhode Island Governor's Blue Ribbon Panel report found that maintaining the highway system in a state of good repair would take an investment of $3 billion over 10 years - double the state's current investment.
In this two-minute update video, Lewis discusses the steps Rhode Island is taking to close the funding gap and what else must be done. He also talks about the steps being taken to ensure that the investments made by RIDOT are used efficiently and effectively. Watch the full video and other Two-Minute State DOT Updates on Transportation TV's State to State Channel at www.TransportationTV.org.
The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) is the "Voice of Transportation" representing State Departments of Transportation in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. AASHTO is a nonprofit, nonpartisan association serving as a catalyst for excellence in transportation. Follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/aashtospeaks.
Contact: Tony Dorsey
tdorsey@aashto.org 202-624-3690
