ACHTUNG: This is not a “fair and balanced” story. It is an editorial by the editor.
I am not optimistic that newly-elected Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will be able to honor her campaign promise to “fix the damn roads.” The reason is purely political.
In order to repair the ubiquitous, annoying, costly and sometimes dangerous potholes along our transportation arteries, new and more revenue will have to be secured. And that means taxes in one form or another.
To be sure, Ms. Whitmer’s famous 2018 campaign pledge may have been ill advised, but it helped get her elected. And it was no worse than Rick Snyder’s “One tough nerd” and John Engler’s jingle, “Just see what John Engler can do.” Too many politicians do whatever it takes to get elected.
Missing in action here is the fact that the Republican Party has owned this state politically, lock, stock and barrel, since 2010. The GOP has had huge majorities in the Senate and House of Representatives during these years, owned the governor’s chair, the attorney general’s seat and that of secretary of state.
Yet the Republicans failed to come up with anything to “fix the damn roads” over these years. They had the power, but they didn’t use it.
When former State Rep. Ken Yonker of the 72nd District was asked by Leighton Township resident Steve Shoemaker at a Township Board meeting why such like-minded individuals couldn’t solve the problem, the legislator replied that it takes time to pass such a law to address the problem. Shoemaker rightly replied that it took the GOP just one day to shove the “Right to Work” bill through the State Legislature in a Lame Duck session.
Our unabashedly partisan Republican government will be in no mood to pass anything that might make a Democratic governor look good, particularly in the era of Donald Trump, fraught with tribalism and “party above the people.” The GOP, despite the results in the November general election, continues to hold majorities in both the State House and State Senate.
As I drive often on Park Street in Wayland and along Division Avenue in Leighton Township, I am challenged by the annoying and potentially destructive presence of potholes. But I don’t hold out a lot of hope for solutions.
I have long held that the only worthy roles government can play in our lives is to solve problems and serve as a fair referee. I fear it ain’t gonna happen.
Mr Young
If the governor is going to fix the roads, my guess would be those controlled by the state.
Streets in city and village limits usually are the responsibility of those cities and villages.
If the road is a county primary than they maintain them with a portion of cost paid by the township.
Township roads are repaired by the county and township
I would be very surprised if the state would not fix the state roads first with whatever monies they can gather.
It would be interesting to see the amount of money each household would have to pay to fix all the roads in the state in one year if that was even possible.
If you voted for the governor, believing she will fix all the roads, not raise taxes, fix the education system without costing you taxes upon taxes, you seriously need a class in economics.
Staying in touch with local government be it city, township or county… you know the cost per mile and there is truly no money for all the needed road work.
Reality says maintenance, new or improved all cost money, many believe someone other than they should pay. The fact remains some in Michigan may never see their road pothole free.
Every issue has a priority and we in Michigan should of learned by now roads are at the bottom. One would agree clean chemical free water is a higher priority than roads, the list seems to go on and on.
Hopefully, the governor can do something with at least some of the roads.
Michigan increased its M-DOT Road funding by a minimum of $1.2 billion dollars a year in 2015 which included a graduated increase in fuel taxes. The results of that measure is that most Michiganders appear to have forgotten all about it and our roads are essentially unchanged. It was obvious to everyone paying attention at the time that the GOP leadership waited far too long to address roads in any meaningful way and it probably paid the price for it more than anything else in the last election.
Now we have a new Democrat appointed M-DOT administrator (a career M-DOT engineer and bureaucrat) telling us that he needs many billions more to accomplish road repairs and upgrades. Nobody should be surprised by this because of who appointed him and the consistent failure of M-DOT to perform anything well other than having its hand out to Michigan’s taxpayers.
M-DOT has an annual budget of approximately $4.7 Billion dollars and has projected a plan to spend more than $2 Billion on road and bridge repairs in 2019. By comparison Indiana’s DOT has an annual budget of $2 Billion and the Illinois DOT has a budget of $5 Billion. Should Michigan be spending $2 Billion dollars a year more to maintain and upgrade less DOT roads than Illinois does? For further comparison, the Wisconsin DOT has an annual budget of $6.82 Billion. Roads in Wisconsin are far better than in Michigan with no doubt but the people of Michigan will not swallow that tax pill without demonstrated results. “Results” would start roads that don’t start crumbling within weeks of being newly installed and holding contractors that build defective pavement or fail to build roads to their specifications accountable for those failures.
It has already been pointed out that M-DOT is only responsible for portion of the roads in Michigan. Many of the roads that are in atrocious condition are actually the responsibility of local Governments. It would seem that it is past time to simply audit M-DOT to find out where all the money is going that Michiganders are spending for repairs and upgrades to the roads that M-DOT is responsible for starting in 2016. The people of Michigan already spend enough for our roads and we really just aren’t getting what we are paying for now.
No road ever built will last absent maintenance, lots of maintenance. As Mr. Smit so eloquently stated most of the roads are County or Township or Village, not State or Federal, no problem blame the State Republicans anyway. You failed to blame President Trump for the roads, the folks are going to run you out of the Democratic Party for that sin. Stay warm Mr. Editor.
People forget that the Michigan Legislature changed the revenue sharing formula that has resulted in counties and municipalities getting less money to repair the roads that fall within their responsibility. At the same time the Michigan legislature passed laws that limit the counties’ and municipalities’ ability to increase taxes and fees to make up for the lost revenue taken away by the formula change.
Michigan has been in the bottom 10 for road for road investment for the last 50 years. Our state’s governors and legislators have been doing the bare minimum since Nixon was elected for his first term. The large amounts being spent beginning in 2015 is a case of $1.25B in 2015 and more since is still too little given the previous 45-year history of road funding in MI.
I won’t join in perpetuating the myth that Michigan spends enough on roads or does enough for legislation of how roads are used. Successful lobbying by the automotive sector has Michigan still allowing heavier per axel load limits than Ohio. Michigan’s solution? Increase vehicle tags for everyone treating the trucking industry like they are sacred cows.
Per capita spending puts MI near the bottom compared to our neighbors MN, WI, IL, IN and Ohio. Over the last decade, Ohio has spent $1B more on roads than MI.
If we want better roads we need to be prepared to spend more for roads. Living by the any tax is a bad tax mantra some have embraced for the last 40 years has put Michigan roads in their current condition. The MI GOP has an opportunity to step up. State Representative Steve Johnson has a chance to step up. I’m not holding my breath.
And so it goes.