Summary Bottom Line Report | Full Bottom Line Report
Elements Not Included Fully in the Modeled Costs
Cost Increases to Mitigate Community and Environmental Impacts
As transportation agencies adjust designs to better respond to community concerns and to mitigate environmental impacts, additional program delivery costs are generated. Two research studies conducted in the past year indicate that these factors commonly increase costs from 7 to 10 percent over and above the project costs addressed by current cost modeling procedures. Applying the results of these studies to the broader national program would indicate an annual increase in the range of $7.3 billion to $10.5 billion for the 1.4 percent growth highway scenario.
System Operations
Operational improvements, such as signalization and special signage, ramp metering, and improved incident response, can have extraordinary benefits to the highway system. A research study examined two investment options, continuing current implementation practices and a more aggressive implementation scenario.
Total capital costs over the 20-year analysis period developed in the study are $22.2 billion in capital costs for the aggressive deployment scenario plus another $29.6 billion for system infrastructure support and replacement, for a total of $51.8 billion. This would amount to only $ 2.6 billion per year in new capital and reconstruction costs. Operations and maintenance costs would amount to slightly less than $1.6 billion per year. Benefits generated per unit of cost are extraordinary.
Safety
With annual highway deaths still exceeding 41,000 per year, the United States lags behind the safety levels already achieved in other nations. A 2006 update of the costs and benefits of implementing the AASHTO Strategic Highway Safety Plan came to $1.5 billion in annual costs for operations, maintenance, education, and enforcement, and a total capital investment of $24.39 billion for infrastructure and related investments, or $1.2 billion per year.
Security
Preserving the security of the nation’s transportation infrastructure remains a vital concern. A research study was conducted to produce new cost estimates of security investment needs: threat assumptions and possible modes of attack were updated; facility inventories and vulnerability status were reviewed; and alternative countermeasures were evaluated. The report identifies capital cost investment needs of just below $2 billion per year over the authorization period plus additional operating and maintenance costs of $1.6 billion per year. The capital costs are estimated at $1.072 billion for highways and $867 million for transit, and at roughly equal shares in operating costs.
Infrastructure Reconstruction
Today large parts of the interstate system are reaching the age where major reconstruction will be required. This work has already begun around the country and reconstruction costs have been dramatic. It is not possible at this time to estimate the costs involved in a complete reconstruction of the system. A special analysis conducted to assess how to obtain reconstruction cost estimates recommends that the states conduct a complete systematic nationwide inventory of the interstate system to determine the future investment requirements.
