By Cliff Hightower

Staff Writer

Concerns about money for Tennessee roads have led to an alliance among six prominent state lobbying groups seeking public support for revamping transportation funding.

J. Rodney Carmical, executive director of Tennessee County Highway Officials, said a steering committee formed six months ago for the Tennessee Transportation Coalition.

He said the spark came when members from the highway officials group and the Tennessee Road Builders Association attended joint meetings of the House and Senate transportation committees.

The groups realized the public was not getting all the information concerning the plight of Tennessee's roads, he said.

"We're blessed with good roads," Mr. Carmical said. "We're blessed with good bridges. We don't want to lose that."

The Tennessee Department of Transportation has lost more than $170 million in federal funds over the last two years. Transportation officials also have expressed fears that gas tax collections are flat.

Mr. Carmical said part of the group's purpose will be to visit local governments, civic organizations and Chambers of Commerce to talk about different funding methods such as toll bridges, toll roads and public-private partnerships.

He said the group would not support raising the gas tax, which he said is outdated.

Conservation and mandatory increases in fleet fuel mileage mean less money for state coffers in the future, he said.

"The gasoline tax is not the answer," Mr. Carmical said. "Fuel consumption is going to go down at some point in time."

Kent Starwalt, executive director of the Tennessee Road Builders Association, said the coalition has not set its next meeting date.

"It's very much in its infancy," he said.

The group's goals will be to provide information at the local level and get road funding information to the General Assembly, he said.

"Clearly there will be a lobbying effort," he said. "Whether it's the coalition or an individual in the coalition that does it, I don't know."

TDOT spokeswoman Julie Oaks said the agency is aware of the coalition and the problems it has outlined.

"TDOT is not the only state facing these funding issues; it is something happening on a national level," she said. "Many state DOTs are looking for ways to increase their revenue."

John Graham, president of Tennessee County Highway Officials, said the first informal meetings led to support for building the coalition.

"That was the turning point," Mr. Graham said. "That was when we saw that we needed to be supporting each other instead of fighting each other."

E-mail Cliff Hightower at chightower@timesfreepress.com

BANDING TOGETHER

* Tennessee County Highway Officials

* Road Builders Association

* Municipal League

* Trucking Association

* Public Transportation Association

* Infrastructure Alliance

Source: Tennessee County Highway Officials

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