Phil Batt: Fixing highways requires sacrifices

BY PHIL BATT - Idaho Statesman It's frustrating when it takes 40 minutes to drive to work from eight miles away. We need more arterials and more freeway lanes. And it's hard on the car when the roads are filled with pits and potholes. We're overdue for a new roadbed in a lot of places throughout the state. And it sure would be nice if we had a superhighway to North Idaho and a road up to Midvale that bypassed the winding canyon along the Payette River. But don't hold your breath while waiting for these improvements to take place. The reality is that it will require a massive change in funding our highway program to make any substantial progress on Idaho's roads. I know it's a poor time to talk about increasing the cost of operating a motor vehicle, but we have always had more needs than money regarding our transportation... [read full story]