A 700 million-mile rollback | Maryland Gazette (HometownGlenBurnie.com)

According to figures released this week, Maryland drivers drove 700 million fewer miles between November 2007 and May 2008 than in the same period last year.

And the less gas people guzzle in the state, the less tax money goes into Maryland's Transportation Trust Fund to design, build and maintain roads.

For the month of May, the state's vehicle-miles declined 4.2 percent, or 200 million fewer miles than in May of last year.

May's drop comes during a month that traffic usually rises because of the Memorial Day holiday and the start of the summer vacation season. But not only are people cutting back on their own driving, they are increasingly using fuel-efficient vehicles, carpooling and taking mass transportation, which may be good for the environment but puts fewer pennies toward roadwork.

Maryland Department of Transportation Secretary John D. Porcari said with less collected gas tax, the state's Transportation Trust Fund revenue has taken a hit and will force the department to prioritize just the projects necessary toward maintaining the existing transportation infrastructure.

All Maryland Department of Transportation activities are supported by the trust fund, including debt service, maintenance, operations, administration and capital projects.

Examples of projects this money funds are interchanges, road-widening and lane additions.

"Some of the trends that you see at the national level - some of the biggest declines since World War II nationally - are happening in every state, including Maryland," Mr. Porcari said. "That will have some impact on our capital program."

The state's Consolidated Transportation Program includes $10.6 billion for capital transportation projects over a six-year period. In the current fiscal year, the state transportation department has budgeted $1.9 billion to spend on highway, transit, port, airport and Motor Vehicle Administration projects.

Because less money is funneling into the state's transportation fund, Mr. Porcari said the department will be selective in how it schedules projects in the capital program, making maintenance of the current transportation system the top priority and all other projects ancillary.

But some kinds of projects will not be touched by the cutbacks at all.

Among those projects are bridge rehabilitation and replacement needs, as well as other safety projects that have separate funds that will remain stable, he said.

Anne Arundel County has two major bridge projects listed on the state's six-year CTP: the bridge over Bacon Ridge Ranch on Defense Highway and the bridge over CSX Railroad on Route 732.

MDOT spokesman Jack Cahalan said the Bay Bridge also will not be affected by funding shortfalls because, although it is part of the federal highway system, the bridge is owned and operated by the Maryland Transportation Authority. The tolls collected at seven locations around the state fund all of the Bay Bridge's maintenance.

"The bottom line is that toll revenue, not federal dollars, are used to maintain and improve the Bay Bridge," Mr. Cahalan said. "The state of federal funding should not impact the Bay Bridge."

Mr. Porcari said the department does not yet know how much less revenue it will have available to spend in the coming year but will have a better idea in late August when analysts compile financial data.

David Roose, the director of the state's Bureau of Revenue Estimates, said the gas tax is holding basically flat from last year. Typically, the tax grows 1 to 2 percent a year, he said.

The state received $756 million in gas tax revenue in fiscal 2007, and the original estimate for fiscal 2008 was $764 million.

Today, for every gallon of gas purchased in Maryland, customers pay 23.5 cents in state and 18.4 cents in federal taxes.

But motor-fuel tax contributes to only 19 percent of the money flowing into the Transportation Trust Fund.

Another major source of revenue come from motor vehicle titling taxes, which makes up 20 percent of the fund. Additionally, the lagging economy has inevitably driven down vehicle sales across the country, with 3 million less cars sold nationally compared with last year. It accounts to just one more setback for all transportation needs, with Maryland being no exception.

The other 61 percent of the fund's revenue comes from federal aid, MVA registration and fees, corporate income taxes, transit fares and fees, bonds, and sales and use taxes.

Despite the current dilemma state transportation officials face, Mr. Porcari said there are no signs of a gas tax hike on the near horizon.

"We don't have any plans to do that," he said. "The General Assembly approved a big increase for transportation funding in the last session. It's time for our federal counterparts to do that same."

With all Americans scaling back the distances they're driving, the scope of the problem can be extrapolated to the federal level.

The federal highway trust fund, which relies on per-gallon taxes that don't rise with price, faces a multibillion dollar shortfall next year, down from a surplus of more than $10 billion just three years ago.

According to Federal Highway Administration data released Monday, Americans drove 9.6 billion fewer miles in May 2008 than in May 2007, the third-largest monthly drop in the 66 years the data has been collected.

If revenue dips too low on the state or national end, that may make future projects difficult to fund, with the cost of steel having risen 35 percent and liquid paving asphalt having climbed 105 percent just in the past six months.

Mr. Porcari, however, believes it's important to look at this trend with a long-term perspective.

"What's healthy in the future is less driving," he said. "It may cause some short-term pain on revenues, but the larger picture is to have a more sustainable and maintainable transportation infrastructure."

Staff Writer Liam Farrell contributed to this report.