In response, NJ Transportation Commissioner John Haley told the Home News Tribune, "They're trotting out the same tired old errors of fact to advance their myopic and disingenuous agenda." Haley said only 9.2 percent of $1.6 billion in state and federal assistance available to DOT and NJ Transit will be used for new highway construction. As we wrote last week, that much for new construction is quite high when taken together with the entire state transit budget and all maintenance spending from state and federal sources as well.

Indeed, NJDOT was hit hard over maintenance issues at a North Jersey Transportation Planning Authority (NJTPA) meeting this week, where the agency's spending priorities came under fire from north Jersey freeholders and NJTPA officials during discussion of capital projects for the 1998-2002 "Transportation Improvement Program." A revision of the program proposed by NJ DOT would delay or drop 45 projects originally slated for 1999.

Of those to be dropped, many are long-delayed maintenance projects. Neglect of the Route 1&9 viaduct in Elizabeth would continue. The Route 21 bridge over Amtrak and I-78 and a number of Route 80 section maintenance projects in Bergen County are also being pushed out of the funded portion of the program.

NJTPA staff and committee members were surprised at the radical revisions and took issue with DOT's claim that all "doable, fundable" projects were being pursued. Citing North Jersey's tremendous bridge repair backlog, NJTPA Executive Director Joe Weiner remarked, "When I look at an $800 million list of large ticket bridge needs, I choke to know they are slipping."

The latest data available to the Tri-State Transportation Campaign shows that NJDOT is spending over 40% of state highway funds on new road capacity. The Potholes and Politics report said 58% of New Jersey's urban highways were in less than good condition.

Nationally and in NJ, motorists are paying the price for continued emphasis on new road construction. According to Potholes, NJ motorists spend $216,217,623 yearly on auto repairs caused by poorly maintained roads. Drivers end up paying twice - once in taxes and again in auto repairs.

New Jersey drivers say their first priority is maintenance. According to an August 1998 Quinnipiac College Poll, New Jerseyans want smoother roads more than they want more of them. The poll said 46% of New Jersey residents say that the most important transportation-related issue facing the state is road and bridge repair. 27% say that improving bus and train service is the most important, while 23% say building and widening highways is top priority.

The issue of funding roadway repair will become increasingly important over the next year in New Jersey because the state will need to find revenue to finance the renewal of the Transportation Trust Fund. A blank check to DOT that does not demand a legislatively mandated "fix it first" policy (see MTRs #178 & 179) will be a mistake for New Jersey and its efforts to come to grips with sprawl and gridlock.