CHEYENNE - Wyoming highways are taking a beating, and the state must rethink the way it pays for them if it wants to maintain a safe travel system, transportation officials say.

But some state officials and legislators doubt policy makers have the political will to fix what highway officials call a funding "crisis."

The governor and lawmakers have floated a number of proposals to increase funding. Few provide the steady budget the Wyoming Department of Transportation needs for good planning, and all stand a fair chance of failure in the upcoming legislative session.

Many state lawmakers in the recent elections voiced support for increased spending on roads. But that ambition could turn cold when it comes time to vote for increased taxes or fees that are part of most serious funding packages.

"I don't think you'll see a big comprehensive solution while we have a surplus in general fund monies," said Del McOmie, chief engineer for WYDOT.

Increasing truck traffic and energy-industry vehicles are pummeling roads. Skyrocketing construction costs and flat federal highway funding result in less maintenance and rapid deterioration.

WYDOT says it needs a $500 million boost over two years to do its job. A steady funding stream would encourage contractors to invest in multimillion-dollar equipment needed to build roads. Timely maintenance will eliminate more costly spending for reconstruction a few years from now, according to WYDOT.

"It's really a case of pay now or pay a lot more later," McOmie said.

Gov. Dave Freudenthal's supplemental budget includes $162 million for highways using money the Legislature earmarked for the Permanent Mineral Trust Fund.

The Legislature's Transportation, Highways and Military Affairs Committee is considering a similar proposal for around $300 million in one-time funding from the state general fund over two years.

A proposal by Secretary of State Joe Meyer to borrow from the Permanent Mineral Trust Fund is gaining little traction.

The House Revenue Committee today in Cheyenne will consider two bills that would increase the state fuel tax by 5 cents per gallon. One is a tiered increase over two years; the other is a single boost in 2007. The full 5-cent increase would raise about $32 million per year - far from enough to cover the $250 million annual need.

Some members of the House Revenue Committee say it's time to increase WYDOT's share of mineral revenue, which the Legislature capped during harder times in 2002.

Revenue Committee member Rep. Tom Walsh, R-Casper, is sponsoring a bill to increase spending by $220 million next year using state mineral revenues. The bill would open the door for continued similar spending, Walsh said.

Given the long shot for many of the proposals, transportation officials and savvy lawmakers are taking other steps to promote long-terms solutions.

The Transportation, Highways and Military Affairs Committee will introduce legislation to create an Interstate 80 study commission. WYDOT officials hope the bill's $100,000 price tag will provoke enough debate during the upcoming session to educate rookie lawmakers about statewide highway issues.

WYDOT has produced multimedia campaigns and a DVD called "We Must Act Now" that focuses on I-80. The message is clear: Good roads depend on the willingness to pay for them.

"We've got to get the word out how rapidly our highways are deteriorating," said the committee chairman, Rep. Dave Edwards, R-Douglas.

So what would a comprehensive funding package look like?

* It might start with an increase in the state fuel tax. Wyoming drivers currently pay 14 cents a gallon on gasoline and diesel, one of the lowest rates in the nation. The rate hasn't increased since 1998, and neighbor states collect around 10 cents more per gallon.

"Raising fuel tax 5 cents a gallon would amount to about $65 a year in additional expense to the average driver," Edwards said. "We're talking $5 a month."

* Another idea is raising the cost of driver's licenses. Wyoming drivers have paid $20 per license since the 1980s. Commercial licenses are $25.

The cost to administer WYDOT's driver's license services division, meanwhile, runs a $5 million annual deficit.

* Another proposal would give WYDOT a larger portion of vehicle registration fees. The department receives a flat $15 fee for each vehicle. The rest goes to counties.

* Yet another idea is removing the caps on WYDOT's share of mineral royalties.

"If those caps hadn't been put in place, we'd have received about an additional $500 million from 2002 to 2008," McOmie said.

* Meyer's trust-fund proposal would allocate up to $200 million into the highway fund and up to $100 million into an earmarked revenue account for county roads and municipal streets. The money would be repaid at 5 percent interest over 15 years.

A Casper Star-Tribune poll in October found that 56 percent of likely voters support borrowing from the mineral trust for highways. Twenty-nine percent were opposed and 15 percent undecided, according to the poll, whose margin of error was plus or minus 4 percent.

* WYDOT also has been pushing for multilane highways in some busy areas. While expensive, multilanes would reduce the pressure on roads and could spark economic development and generate state tax revenue.

The 2006 Legislature created an account for multilanes, but the appropriation was too small for extensive construction of wider highways. It was a hot topic during the 2006 session, but there has been almost no discussion of multilanes leading up to the 2007 session. Edwards said his committee will not make a push in 2007.

* Another possibility is working with the railroad industry to haul truck cargo across Wyoming on rail.

Entire trucks and drivers would be loaded onto rail cars at one end of the state and hauled to the other. If the "land ferry" concept diverted 20 percent of the trucks, it could save more than $4 billion over 30 years and hundreds of lives lost in highway crashes, according to WYDOT.

"What we want to do is encourage the railroad to take some of the increased (truck traffic)," State Planning Engineer Bob Milburn said.

That idea might already be dead. Edwards and WYDOT officials have said railroad companies aren't interested in the concept.

* Other possibilities include toll roads or a separate truck route to haul goods across southern Wyoming.

Transportation officials said it will take a combination of many resources to rescue the state highway system. Getting any one of them passed while state coffers are brimming will be difficult.

But if lawmakers continue to reject a comprehensive strategy, the future of Wyoming highways looks grim, officials warn.

According to McOmie, the department can continue to limp along on infusions of general fund dollars or mineral revenue. But it won't be able to outrun its maintenance backlog forever, he said.

"How do you keep up with the deterioration in the roads when you have this increased truck traffic, higher demand from public for mobility and basically flat funding?" McOmie said.

The Poll:

Would you support or oppose borrowing money from the Permanent Wyoming Mineral Trust Fund to fund state highway improvements?

Statewide: 56 percent support, 15 percent undecided, 29 percent oppose.

Men: 55 percent support, 14 percent undecided, 31 percent oppose..

Women: 57 percent support, 16 percent undecided, 27 percent oppose.

Democrats: 57 percent support, 22 percent undecided, 21 percent oppose.

Republicans: 57 percent support, 11 percent undecided, 32 percent oppose.

Independents: 52 percent support, 20 percent undecided, 28 percent oppose.

How the poll was done

The Casper Star-Tribune poll was conducted Oct. 9-12 by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research Inc. of Washington D.C. A total of 625 registered Wyoming voters were interviewed statewide by telephone. All said they were likely to vote in the November general election.

There were 387 Republicans (62 percent), 173 Democrats (28 percent) and 65 independents (10 percent). Pollsters interviewed 315 women, or 50 percent of the sample, and 310 men, also 50 percent.

The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points. The margin of error is higher for any subgroup such as gender sampling. Those interviewed were selected by random variation of the last four digits of telephone numbers. A cross-section of exchanges was used to ensure an accurate reflection of the state. Quotas were assigned to reflect voter turnout by county.

Here is the breakdown

- Northeast Wyoming, 120 interviews in Converse, Niobrara, Weston, Cook, Campbell, Johnson, and Sheridan counties.

- Northwest Wyoming, 150 interviews in Big Horn, Washakie, Hot Springs, Fremont, Sublette, Teton, and Park counties.

- Southern Wyoming, 170 interviews in Goshen, Platte, Albany, Carbon, Sweetwater, Uinta, and Lincoln counties.

- Laramie County, 105 interviews.

- Natrona County, 80 interviews.

Click on the headlines below for related stories.

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'Highway fund once had plenty'

'I-80 poses big burden'

'On the precipice: Wyo risks economy, way of life without highway funding fix, WYDOT says'

'Roads play key role in Wyoming life'

Reach capital bureau reporter Jared Miller at (307) 632-1244 or at jared.miller@casperstartribune.net.