Should Sussex County get in the road construction business?

It may seem far-fetched, but members of the county's planning and zoning commission are seriously discussing doing just that as they write the mobility chapter of the 2018 comprehensive plan.

While no specifics were discussed on how the county would raise funds for roadwork, the discussion focused on the county generating revenue, getting matching state funds and taking charge of road projects.

Commissioner Marty Ross said state transportation officials have fallen so far behind on roadwork in the county that the only way to begin to catch up is for the county to generate revenue and manage its own projects.

He said his list of needed work totals about $1 billion. “There is no way to generate those funds. We need new money and not just impact fees,” Ross said.

He suggested the county generate revenue to be matched by the Delaware Department of Transportation Trust Fund with the funds managed by the county. “We need more local management. What’s the difference with developers doing the work or the county doing the work?” he asked.

The suggestion that the county explore management of road work surfaced during a May 22 comprehensive plan workshop led by state transportation officials who assist county officials with writing the plan's mobility chapter.

Ross said the county needs to look at revenue sources – such as tolls – and county-funded road improvements. He said immediate savings would be realized because county-managed projects would not be required to pay state prevailing wages. “This would solve the problem because what’s been done the past 50 years is not working,” he said.

“Then what is the mechanism? What can we do differently?” asked Josh Thomas, DelDOT planner for Sussex County.

“You have to change the business side of projects,” Ross answered.

Wanted: Revenue generating ideas

Commissioners want state transportation officials to return with ideas for revenue generation at a future workshop.

Thomas said except for paying gas taxes, tourists are not paying into the transportation system in Sussex County. “Perhaps it's time to discuss the merit of user fees,” he said. “You will need the courage to suggest things that may be unpopular but need to be talked about.”

Commission Chairman Bob Wheatley said the courage needs to come from the commissioners. “You need to be creative as you can be with no limits,” he told Thomas. “People are asking us to get into the traffic business.”

While DelDOT has about $900 million in projected revenue that goes into the transportation trust fund, about $340 million is dedicated to operating costs and not capital improvements. More than half of the capital budget is federal funding.

This fiscal year, DelDOT will have approximately $550 million for capital projects throughout the state with about $137 million dedicated to Sussex County projects.

“That doesn’t give us a lot to fix roads here,” said Commissioner Keller Hopkins. “We need to face the reality and come up with something better.”

“The reality is that maybe we just don’t have enough money to work with,” Wheatley said. “If the money is not sufficient, what are the alternatives?” he asked. “No one wants to pay additional taxes, but what do we do?”

“Sooner or later we have to talk about revenue generation for road construction and how we get a bigger share of the money,” Wheatley said.

DelDOT Secretary Jennifer Cohan admitted that Sussex County has not received its fair share of transportation funding over the years. She said DelDOT is about 10 years behind land-use approvals in the county. “That's why we are pushing for a transportation improvement district so it doesn't get worse,” she said.

When asked about the county playing a more active role in the business of building roads, Cohan replied candidly. “Two years ago you didn't even have a planner,” she said. “Now you have two, so you've gone a long way, but this is a huge undertaking.”

However, she said, if county officials want to make the change, DelDOT officials would assist them.