A new study ranks Louisiana as having the ninth-worst overall transportation infrastructure in the United States. Louisiana Good Roads and Transportation Association President Ken Perret says the study shows poor roads cost the average Louisiana driver 624-dollars a year in vehicle and operating costs and only six states have a higher percentage of structurally deficient bridges than Louisiana.
“All our major bridges are getting to that point where they’re going to need major rehab and then the smaller bridges are really a problem because a lot of them were built with timber pilings,” said Perret.
Perret calls on all gubernatorial and legislative candidates to be open and honest with voters on how they will address transportation issues.
The state’s 20-cent-per-gallon gasoline tax is the state’s primary means of funding road projects and it’s one of the lowest in the country. Perret fears the $14 billion backlog of needed road projects will remain underfunded until there’s a disaster.
“We need to do something about it before it gets any worse and we have a major catastrophe, hopefully, that’s not what it’s going to take, but sometimes that’s what it takes a major catastrophe, a major structure and loss of lives,” said Perret.
Perret says lawmakers continue to ignore the issue and it’s going to take voters reaching out to their legislators to bring about change.
“So many people that are affected by bad roads and bridges, that’s the way it really needs to get done, on a grassroots level,” said Perret.
