By Mike Leidemann
Advertiser Transportation Writer

Congress is considering raising federal gasoline taxes for the first time in a decade. Officials say the tax increase may be necessary to pay for more federal transit projects to fend off the nation's traffic congestion.

Various proposals showing up in Congress call for increases ranging from 5 cents to 12 cents by the end of the decade. The federal tax, last increased in 1993, is 18.4 cents per gallon now.

In addition, some highway proponents want Congress to tie the federal gas tax rate to the inflation rate, thereby building in automatic raises to keep pace with the escalating costs of road construction. That alone would increase the gas tax by about 3 cents over the next six years.

The Bush administration has said it opposes any new taxes now, but an increasing number of lawmakers say the gas tax increase may be the only way possible to finance needed highway projects.

Every penny increase in the gas tax generates about $1.7 billion, according to federal officials.

The additional tax, whatever it is, would be on top of the state and county gasoline taxes that Hawai'i drivers already pay. The current local taxes of 55 cents per gallon are among the highest in the nation.

In Hawai'i the local taxes generated more than $68 million for the highway fund in fiscal year 2000, making it by far the biggest source of roadway repair money. In addition, the state expects to receive more than $140 million a year in federal highway money in the near future.

That assumes, however, that Congress makes no changes to the way the gasoline tax money is apportioned among states. Later this year, the government has to reauthorize the legislation that distributes the money, and there are fears among some officials that Hawai'i's share could drop under a new formula.

Even if the additional gasoline taxes are approved, the money probably will just be enough to maintain — not improve or expand — the current highway system, according to a report last week by the Gannett News Service.

Despite record spending on transportation over the past decade, commuting time in cities of all sizes has shot up.

The average motorist in urban areas with populations under 500,000 wasted 15.2 hours in traffic during 2000 — triple the time in 1987, according to recent studies.

Honolulu is one of the few places, though, where traffic congestion is getting better instead of worse. The most recent survey by the Texas Transportation Institute found that Honolulu's roadway congestion index had decreased by 3 points, the best in the nation.

That will be a small consolation, maybe, if you are spending up to 12 cents a gallon more in highway taxes in the coming years.

Mike Leidemann's Drive Time column runs Tuesdays. Reach him at 525-5460 or mleidemann@honoluluadvertiser.com.