VDOT begins warnings of interstate rest stop closures

The idea about leasing the space to restaurants and gas stations sounds like a winner for everyone!

Why is that so difficult to put into place?

BTW.. generally, it is not passenger vehicles that cause the heavy wear and tear on the roads.. it has been shown that the “over weight” trucks cause a disproportinate amount of damage.. in fact heavy trucks do cause 1/4 of the total cost for road maintenance.. They pay about 2.7M for overlimit permits, but cause 211 Million in damage per a 2007 study (reported in the RTD DEC 24, 2008).  Yes, passenger vehicles contribute.. but not at the rate of trucks.  And we do pay quite a bit in taxes to support VDOT.. This is a way for Tim Kaine to cause us “pain” so we will see the need to crack open our wallets a little wider.

compusa- something for nothing.Are you kidding me.Do you know what I pay in taxes to see it squandered?
Mark Warner AND Tim Kaine have been whining about roads. etc for 8 yrs.Warner levied the LARGEST tax increase in the history of the Commonwealth ostensibly for ‘the roads.‘ Kaine inherited a 1.5 billion dollar surplus.What did he do with it?
I would agree that if theres one basic thing the government should provide its infrastructure. But look what we get.
The state increases its budget EVERY YEAR by a higher percentage than most incomes rise or private industries revenue increase.Yet they have a hard time providing these basic services.What’s wrong?
I run my own business,have for last 21 years.If I don’t manage my money wisely,guess what..I go out of business.If/when the government mismanages their money(actually its OUR money)they just take more of our money.Its that simple.I’m not willing to pay more taxes right now nor do I think that a tax increase would do anything other that stifle an economic recovery.
I don’t care about the rest stops, I rarely use them although many people do.I still say its just like Warner closing the DMV’s.It was just a precursor to his historic tax increase.What did that do other than to grow the size of our state government.Tax increases and growing government are self-perpetuating.Its got to stop.
However, if you feel like they need or deserve more of your money,just send it to them.They’ll be glad to squander that for you, too.

mrright Posted “Jack’s right.Its all about raising taxes.Its the same tactic Mark Warner used w/ DMV’s.There seems to be a pattern here….“

So you believe thatthere sould be no sacrifices? The day has arrived when the money has run out. Period.

The numbers have been posted detailing what the incoming revenue stream provides, and what the demand for those limited resources are.

1500 peope have lost their jobs, or have been informed of their departure date - VDOT has lost THOUSANDS of workers over the last decade,. Services that have been being provided to the detriment of necessities, such as maintenance of the actual pavement structure, now have to be slashed as well.

Read the bridge reports - many are now well beyond their 50-75 year life span,

Read the pavement report or better yet, stop on the road and examine the pavement - see those cracks? That is deep breakage which means the underlying structure is failing.

Folks the money ain’t there. You can complain about the closing of the reststops, and the grass mowing and the increasing number of potholes, but yet still you cannot face the truth - You don’t get anything for free.

The last time a meaningful increase in the revenue stream occured was 1986, when the tax on a gallon of gas increased one penny.

Gas is taxed by the state at 17.5 cents PER GALLON. If gas costs one dollar it is 17,5 cents. If gas costs four dollars it is still 17.5 cents in the last 20 years real estate prices went up how much?  How much did a loaf of bread increase in price? How much did a car increase in price? How much did a meal at your favorite resturaunt increase in price? How much did your doctor raise his prices?

Do you think the materials in road building and road maintenance did not increase? The salaries of the people working for the contractors? The cost of fuel to run the equipment? The cost of the equipment?

As car mileage increased from an average of 12 miles to the gallon in the 1980s to an average of 19 miles per gallon today, the corresponding numbers is that gasoline sales decreased by the same ratio. More cars can now travel the road increasing wear and tear, more big rigs are destroying the substructure, increasing repairs and the need to re-surface the roads, meaning general costs have soared with no corresponding increase in revenues.

On the interstates cars can now travel from New Jersey to south carolina without having to stop to buy gasoline in Virginia - meaning the road still has to be maintained with zero revenue from many of these drivers.

Like the DMV, which some years ago ran short on operating funds because fees had not kept pace with costs and cuts had to be made, VDOT has reached the day of reckoning.

Costs have outstripped revenue. It’s an ugly truth.

But consider this: How many businesses are still in business after 23 years operating at the same costs as they did 23 years ago?

Do you still work for the same salary you did in 1986?

Is your real estate taxes the same as 23 tears ago?

Is your grocery bill the same as it was 23 years ago? Your electric bill? Your insurance bill?

Yet you still expect VDOT to continue supplying the same level of services with a funding source that hasn’t chage in 23 years.

Sounds like you want something for nothing.

I must live in a different VA than the rest of you.

I find them clean.

They ought to be ... the State spent more than $100 million rebuilding them less than 15 years ago.