MoDOT money to evaporate as residents burn less gas

JEFFERSON CITY — Missouri's Transportation Department says the state will face difficult decisions as the agency's funding declines.

Transportation Director Pete Rahn says his agency has $1.5 billion this year — including federal stimulus money — for construction. He says in five years, Missouri could have as little as $421 million available for transportation projects.

The figures are in a report presented to a legislative committee Monday.

Transportation projects are funded partly with Missouri's gasoline tax. Rahn says the revenue is declining as people drive less and buy more fuel-efficient vehicles. Also, there are few funds still available from a 2004 constitutional amendment that directed more money to highways.