The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) should develop and apply criteria to assess the scalability of Surface Transportation System Funding Alternatives (STSFA) pilot projects, according to a study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office.
The U.S. Department of Transportation agreed with the recommendation.
The Highway Trust Fund, a major source of federal road and bridge funding, is supported mainly through gas taxes. Between 2008 and 2021, more than $270 billion in general revenue has been transferred to the fund to cover its decreasing revenue.
STSFA provides funding for states to develop alternatives to gas tax revenues. The FHWA has not determined how projects funded by the program might inform national policy. Criteria could include examining whether using technologies deployed in various pilot projects to track and report mileage would be feasible or cost-effective in a national system.
Scalability criteria are necessary to assess mileage fee systems’ potential beyond the pilot stage.
The agency did follow most leading practices when designing and evaluating the STSFA program. This includes establishing clear, measurable objectives and developing a methodology to assess the pilots.
Thirteen states, including two multistate coalitions, have used STSFA funds to pilot and research user-based funding alternatives to the fuel tax since fiscal year 2016.