An adequately funded transportation system is critical to Florida’s future.

The cost to build and maintain Florida’s transportation system has increased dramatically since 2001. So the state has shifted the bulk of its funding to the state and federal highways that are part of the Strategic Intermodal System (SIS).

In Sarasota County, Interstate 75 is the only SIS highway. This means that other critical state roads - such as U.S. highways 41 and 301 now compete for a shrinking amount of funds.

An alternative is to fund roadways locally. But local governments are facing the same funding issues the state is facing: they are struggling to fund their own transportation systems.

What You Need to Know

Transportation improvements are funded using several revenue sources. In Sarasota County, the main road-building sources include fuel taxes, road impact fees, telecommunication tax, infrastructure surtax, and property tax. Except for road impact fees, the revenue sources have historically increased in rough proportion to population growth and sometimes also proportional to general cost of living increases.  However, over the past several years the cost to acquire right of way and construct roads has far outpaced the general cost of living. This has created statewide funding problems.

As a matter of policy and in recognition of the funding problems, the State has shifted its funding emphasis to roads necessary for Statewide and regional movement of people and goods. This subset of the transportation infrastructure is known as the Strategic Intermodal System (SIS). It consists of airports, seaports, major roads, and connectors between the ports and major roads that meet the State's SIS criteria. In Sarasota County, Interstate 75 is an SIS facility, Sarasota-Bradenton International Airport is an emerging SIS port, and University Parkway is an SIS connector between Interstate 75 and the airport. And that is the extent of the SIS in Sarasota County. The State's policy is to expend 75 percent of all discretionary revenue on SIS projects.  This has provided funding for additional Interstate 75 projects in Sarasota County, but it has reduced funds available for other State road improvements, such as U.S. Highway 301 in Sarasota and bypass U.S. Highway 41 in Venice, by about 33 percent.

The State's funding policy complements existing concurrency laws and 2005 growth management legislation calling for increased attention to financial feasibility of transportation improvements. This is expected to indirectly require that more State transportation improvement be undertaken by local governments and developers. 

updated 1/24/2007