The state's recently approved 2010-2014 Five-Year Transportation Program has been posted online by the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) on the MDOT Web site at: www.michigan.gov/mdot5yearplan. MDOT also has also posted a new document titled "Financial Crisis Key Messages" to the Web. This document identifies funding strategies for a department that is faced with the reality that there will be insufficient state revenues available to match all of the estimated available federal funds beginning in 2011. The 2010-2014 Five-Year Program was approved by the State Transportation commission at its Jan. 28 meeting. The department must submit the Five Year Program to the Michigan Legislature by March 1.

"If Michigan cannot match federal funds, over a half a billion dollars each year in federal fuel taxes already paid by Michigan residents and businesses will be lost to us," said State Transportation Director Kirk T. Steudle. "Our money will go to other states that are able to provide the needed match. This will have a devastating effect on job creation and Michigan's economy. All modes of transportation are being affected by declining state revenues and decreased buying power, including highway, aviation, bus, rail and marine programs."

Steudle also stated that the transportation system will continue to deteriorate even if the department is able to match federal funding, as it will in 2010.

"Unless state revenue for transportation increases, Michigan will experience substantial decline in road and bridge conditions, and our rail freight, passenger transportation and aviation programs also will suffer," Steudle said. "The message of The Transportation Funding Task Force was clear in November 2008. Michigan needs to double its current investment in transportation to provide an adequate level of service, let alone an improved one."

The Financial Crisis Key Messages document contains charts and graphs illustrating the reduced program of each mode of transportation compared to the previous (2009-2013) Five-Year Transportation Program. The highway program total is reduced most dramatically by more than 35 percent, compared to the previous Five-Year Program total. Projects in the plan for 2010 are fully funded and will not face delays. However, MDOT says that if the current return on federal gas tax revenues falls in 2011 as expected, 256 highway projects will be delayed. The 256 projects break down as: 129 bridge preservation projects, 118 road preservation projects and 10 capacity/new roads projects.

"We will have to implement a reduced road and bridge program investment strategy in 2011 and cut approximately $600 million annually, if federal funding continues to go unmatched," said Steudle.