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Just prior to competing transportation budgets being introduced in Olympia this week, the Washington Policy Center put out a policy brief making the case that Washington state, despite increased spending, is failing to meet expectations when it comes to the state’s transportation system.
WPC’s “The State of Washington’s Transportation System” is part of the free-market think tank’s ongoing “Report Card for Washington’s Future” series examining key state priorities.
According to the report released last week, Washington’s transportation policy has focused on increasing the use of public transportation and alternatives to automobiles since 2012 rather than maintaining roads and bridges and increasing system capacity. In 2020, the Washington State Department of Transportation, or WSDOT, managed 164 bridges in “poor condition.” By 2024, that number had increased to 229.
Meanwhile, the report says that over that same time period, public transit ridership has declined even as the number of miles traveled by Washingtonians has increased.
In 2012, the total number of public transit boardings was 220,697,247. By 2023, boardings had fallen to 164,925,647, a 24% drop. Transit agency revenue was $2.1 billion in 2012. By 2023, it was $5.1 billion, an increase of 83% after inflation. In 2012, 85.5 million daily vehicle miles were traveled on state highways. By 2023, that had gone up to 96.3 million miles.
The report goes on to say that Washington State Ferries has seen a reduction in the number of vessels and ridership while expenses have increased faster than inflation. In 2012, WSF had 19 vessels in service. By 2023, that number dropped to 17.
Total annual service hours for WSF declined from 126,980 in 2012 to 105,456 in 2023, a 17% cut. The number of WSF passenger trips declined from 22 million in 2012 to 17 million in 2023, a decline of some 23%. WSF’s cost-per-service-hour rose from $1,810 in 2012 to $2,679 in 2023, an increase of 11% after inflation.
The report says the number of traffic fatalities nearly doubled since 2012, including an increase in accidents due to impaired driving. According to state records, there were 438 traffic fatalities in 2012. There were 810 fatalities in 2023, an 85% increase, far outpacing the state’s 15% increase in population over the same time period. The percentage of fatal accidents involving an impaired driver went up from 46% in 2014 to 51% in 2023.
The Center Square reached out to WSDOT for comment about WPC’s policy brief.
In an email, WSDOT Acting Communications Director Stefanie Randolph said that “we can’t speak to the specifics of research not produced by our agency.”
In its policy brief, WPC makes recommendations for revamping Washington’s transportation system:
• Focus on improving mobility rather than reducing daily travel.
• Reform transit agency governance and improve accountability.
• Cut the cost of public road projects.
• Make funding for highway preservation and maintenance a higher priority than non-essential programs.
• Allow carbon-emissions revenue to be used for fixing state highways and repairing culverts.
Meanwhile, lawmakers are at the beginning stages of negotiating a state transportation budget. On Monday, both chambers of the state Legislature introduced competing budgets meant to address a $1 billion shortfall for transportation funding in the upcoming 2025-2027 biennium, which begins July 1. Both proposed budgets have a few things in common: higher gas taxes.
Under a $16.2 billion Senate proposal favored by Democratic and Republican leaders on the Senate Transportation Committee, gas taxes would increase by 6 cents per gallon and grow 2% every year through 2031 to help meet inflation. The leaner $15 billion House budget proposes a higher gas tax – 9 cents per gallon – indexed to inflation, which typically grows at about 3% a year.
The Senate also put out a more austere transportation budget proposal to contrast with its other proposed budget. The austere budget would postpone projects and cut workforce development programs to bolster staff at WSF and the Washington State Patrol as part of dealing with the shortfall.
The 105-day legislative session concludes on April 27.