Talking Michigan Transportation: Road Commission for Oakland County Manager Dennis Kolar discusses Michigan road funding formula

Talking Michigan Transportation: Road Commission for Oakland County Manager Dennis Kolar discusses Michigan road funding formula

This week, on the Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, Jeff talks with Dennis Kolar, managing director of the Road Commission of Oakland County, about his op/ed challenging the notion that a long-term fix for Michigan’s roads lies in changing the distribution of funds to the state’s 600-plus road agencies.

In the commentary, published in Crain’s Detroit Business Feb. 16, Kolar observed that the legislation outlining the allocation of road funds has been revised a number of times since the act was adopted in 1951 and none of the changes grow overall revenue.

An excerpt:

"In other words, our Legislature has always done a good job of updating the act when needed to address the ever-changing transportation world. This process has occurred through careful deliberation and a recognition of the many and varying transportation funding needs facing Michigan.

Unfortunately, most recently, there has been a knee-jerk reaction to our current funding crisis. Rather than providing truly adequate funding to address our transportation needs, some have instead proposed to change the Act 51 funding distribution formula so that population is the dominant factor."

Now lawmakers again are proposing changes in the distribution formula without any plan to increase revenues overall. This is despite the Transportation Asset Management Council forecast that nearly 50 percent of pavement in Michigan will be in poor condition by the year 2030.