Financing investments in the road sector

State Highway Agencies in the United States of America (USA) are turning to private investments in the road sector with growing frequency. This trend is a result of increasing needs for system improvements and rising construction and maintenance costs, compared with availability of traditional highway funds from state, federal and local governments. The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) is responsible for the third largest highway system in the USA with responsibilities for over 201,000 lane km (125,500 lane miles) on Virginia's interstate, primary and secondary systems. VDOT estimates that private investments and public private partnerships may satisfy 10-20% of its needs for additional highway capacity. VDOT's perspective of the highway system in the USA, current funding issues, and a case example of the development, funding, and refinancing of the Route 895 Pocahontas Parkway in Richmond, Virginia are described. Observations and recommendations are also provided for new public private ventures, such as the toll facilities planned for an interstate roadway in the Washington D.C. area. For the covering abstract see ITRD E139491.