In a report released September 26, the U.S. DOT's Office of Inspector General (OIG) concluded that the recent growth of highway construction and maintenance costs "reflect structural, not transitory, economic changes," thereby significantly reducing the purchasing power of current highway funding well into the foreseeable future.
The report's findings point out that highway construction and maintenance costs nationwide grew approximately three times faster from 2003 to 2006 than the fastest rate during any 3-year period between 1990 and 2003.