Road Cost Recovery
Road cost recovery is a system to pay for the wear and tear drivers add to Oregon’s roads. Road maintenance is an expensive but critical job; it preserves the roads we have in place, and keeps them safe for all users.
Oregon has relied on a fuel tax at the gas pump to pay for road maintenance for over 100 years. A small portion of revenue from vehicle registration fees also helps cover road maintenance costs.
However, as people buy more electric cars, trucks and SUVs, or gas-powered vehicles that are more fuel efficient, this means drivers are buying less gas or diesel fuel. That’s less revenue from the fuel tax, which means the Oregon Department of Transportation, counties, and cites gets less funding to maintain roads and bridges. (Electric vehicles pay higher title and registration fees but it’s not enough to cover the gas tax revenue shortfall.)
State and local governments can fix this problem by shifting to “road use charging,” which is a system that asks drivers to pay for the miles they drive, not the fuel they use. It ensures every driver pays their fair share for using Oregon’s roads, including electric vehicle drivers. People who drive farther or more often will pay more. People who drive shorter distances or less often will pay less.
ODOT already has a voluntary road use charging program in place for cars, trucks and SUVs called OReGO. The program launched in 2015.
ODOT also runs a similar program with larger commercial vehicles (like semi-trucks) called a “weight-mile tax” that charges road cost fees based on a vehicle’s weight, length and how far it drives in Oregon.
Another way Oregon covers the cost of roads is through flat use fees, which charge a fixed rate for use of a part of the system, like a bridge. Revenue from that fee is used exclusively to cover the cost of that part of the system, per federal law.
Flat use fees have a long history in Oregon. Both bridges in the Portland area that cross the Columbia River (on Interstates 5 and 205) initially had flat use fees that recovered their construction costs.
Road cost recovery: emissions reduction vision
By 2050, Oregon will shift to a road user fee system that fully covers the cost of maintaining Oregon’s roadway system.
o By 2035, Oregon’s registration fees for cars, trucks and SUVs will vary based on fuel efficiency and social costs like emissions and safety. More efficient vehicles pay lower fees.
o By 2035, weight-miles taxes paid by freight trucks will vary based on fuel efficiency and social costs. More efficient vehicles pay lower fees.
How Oregon is doing
The OReGO program for road use charging was launched in 2015 and was the first of its kind in the United States. After seven years, the Oregon Department of Transportation has good data on how to scale the program up from a small group of volunteers to the entire state. The program is currently not mandatory however.
Without a mandatory road use charging program in place, revenue continues to fall well short of costs. This problem will compound as vehicle fuel efficiency improves, meaning less gas tax for the same miles driven.
In 2017, the state legislature passed a landmark transportation funding law that helps shore up revenue in the short term. The law increased gas taxes and vehicle registration fees that vary by fuel-efficiency, but it is not a long-term solution.
How Oregon can improve
OReGO is a solid program that will work, but state lawmakers will need to take action to mandate OReGO statewide to all new vehicles sold. ODOT will also need to work with auto manufactures and dealerships statewide to create an easy way for their customers to enroll in the OReGO program when they buy their new vehicle.
ODOT can also recoup the cost of big projects like bridge upgrades by collecting fees from users of those specific parts of the system.
The agency will also need legislation to change vehicle registration fees and weight-mile taxes to reflect the “true costs” of different vehicles. Such a bill was proposed in the 2021 state legislative session (HB 2690) but failed to pass. It would have calculated registration fees from vehicle age, weight, list price, and fuel efficiency.