Avid highway opponents are less concerned about filling the Trust Fund gap, notwithstanding the effect on transit, and more on stopping road expansion. Widening of Colorado's I-25 and U.S. 26 in Oregon may halt without an agreement for new funds.
Despite the dire warning from Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.), chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works that "Congress (is) 'running out of time' on highway funding", there has been little movement to close the $20 billion funding gap between annual gas tax receipts and transportation spending.
The only "encouraging signs" according to Treasury Secretary Anthony Foxx was the "response of Republican leaders to President Obama's proposal to use $150 billion from closing corporate tax loopholes," wrote Keith Laing last month in The Hill [also posted here].
If Congress can not agree on new transportation funding, it "could spell doom for plans to add a third lane to I-25 in the Front Range, which would cost $1 billion or more," writes Raju Chebium of the Gannett Washington Bureau.
“Without having the federal government as a partner, major projects like that are probably not going to get completed or get underway,” said Kurt Morrison, the Colorado Department of Transportation’s federal liaison.
The Colorado example is replicated throughout the U.S., though it's not just highway expansion projects that are threatened. "Oregon might delay or cancel "a large number" of highway projects if federal transportation money runs out as projected this summer, months earlier than previously estimated, state transportation officials say," writes Yuxing Zheng in The Oregonian.
Zheng points to "the widening of U.S. 26 from 185th Avenue to Cornelius Pass Road" as a road expansion project found in ODOT's 2015-18 statewide transportation improvement plan that is dependent on the infusion of federal highway dollars.
Pointing to DOT's Highway Trust Fund Ticker, he writes that the the Fund's highway account is projected to run out of money around August.
FULL STORY: Funding shortfall threatens highway expansion

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power
Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns
MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant
A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie