Browsing by Author "Bean, Nate"

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    Minnesota Roadway Funding: Revenue Sources & Distribution
    (Transportation Policy and Economic Competitiveness Program, University of Minnesota, 2020-07) Zhao, Jerry; Fonseca, Camila; Bean, Nate; Lari, Adeel
    Minnesota roadway funding comes from a combination of federal, state, and local sources. Federal funding comes primarily from the federal motor fuel tax, while most state funding comes from the three state highway user taxes: the state motor fuel tax, the registration tax, and the motor vehicle sales tax. These funds support the state trunk highway system that includes interstates and state highways, in addition to providing aid to local governments. Local highway funding comes from general funds, made up primarily of property taxes and assessments, in addition to a few dedicated local transportation taxes. This revenue is used to support highways and streets under the jurisdiction of counties, cities, and townships. The network of highways and local roads is essential to the state's economy and the daily activities of Minnesota residents. Maintaining, expanding, and operating this infrastructure is a major expense for the state and local governments inside Minnesota. Generating sufficient revenue for highways and streets remains a major challenge, and recent revenue projections estimate a shortfall of $18 billion in necessary funding between 2018 and 2037, for the state highway system alone. Understanding Minnesota's road financing structure is important to anticipate and address future transportation changes. This report details federal, state, and local government funding for the roadway system in Minnesota. It explores how roadway funding is generated and distributed, as well as the history of current funding mechanisms. Statistics from the Minnesota Transportation Finance Database are used throughout this paper.
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    Motorization Trends in Minnesota
    (Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota, 2019-02) Zhao, Jerry; Lari, Adeel; Fonseca, Camila; Bean, Nate
    The analysis of motorization trends in the state of Minnesota is important because it reveals changes in driver behavior that impact transportation planning and funding across the state. Changes in traveling habits have implications for transportation revenue streams in Minnesota, particularly for roadway infrastructure investment. This report presents an analysis of motorization and highway and roads funding trends in Minnesota between 1980 and 2016. Key motorization patterns include the number of registered vehicles, vehicle miles traveled (VMT), and fuel consumption. In addition, this report analyses the evolution of roadway revenues and expenses at the federal, state, and local levels. The analysis in this report includes an overview of the general trends for the state as well as an overview of the changes by county. Data for the analysis come from the Minnesota Transportation Finance Database. The report has several interesting findings about motorization in Minnesota. For instance, the number of registered vehicles has continually increased since 1980, although it has slowed since the 2000s. Over the same period of time, distance travelled, measured by VMT, and fuel consumption increased, although their per capita measures have been decreasing. Overall, Minnesota?s trends are consistent with the national pattern. The persistence of these trends in the future will have consequences in future roadway funding. In particular, fuel consumption and its long term declines due to increases in fuel efficiency standards could cause continuous revenue reductions unless the state roadway funding structure is adjusted.