Bad roads left unattended will wreak havoc, with little mercy.

Richard Studley, MI Chamber of Commerce: "That means increased wear and tear on motor vehicles, it means more time lost in traffic congestion or construction delays. Poor roads are not safe roads. There are increased accidents and injuries on poor roads in comparison with good roads. Another major cost is lost employment in the construction industry."

Rich Studley directs the Michigan Chamber of Commerce. He's calling on lawmakers to make a bipartisan effort to fund road and bridge repair. If they don't, he says the state could lose 400 million federal dollars for various projects.

Richard Studley: "On the other hand if we invest, there is a return on investment. We need to look at a user fee based system."

That could mean a higher gas tax, but while Studley says that's an option, he says it's also becoming obsolete.
Richard Studley: "Alternative fuel vehicles that are powered by electricity for example. They don't pay motor fuel taxes, so we need to look at revising and updating our financing system."

That could include increasing vehicle registration fees or installing toll roads. Whatever the solution, Studley hopes lawmakers start voting to make Michigan's roads better.

http://www.wlns.com/Global/story.asp?S=14212531