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Some Facts About New Hampshire’s Infrastructure:New Hampshire has approximately 17,000 miles of state and town roads, turnpikes and interstate highways. There are 3,795 bridges in the state. As of 2010, the New Hampshire Department of Transportation plowed more than 800 lane miles of roads and put down 180,000 tons of salt for snow and ice control annually.The state was given a “C” grade by the American Society of Civil Engineers for the condition of its roads and bridges. New Hampshire was rated among the worst in the country for the poor condition of its bridges by Transportation For America. On average, bridges are older in New Hampshire than those in the rest of the country. There are hundreds of bridges on the so-called “red list,” which means that the bridges have major structural problems and need to be repaired or replaced.The state also has a poor record when it comes to public transportation. New Hampshire has no comprehensive rail system and is rated 42nd in terms of investment in public transportation according to the State Department of Transportation.The majority of New Hampshire’s infrastructure funding comes from vehicle registration fees and gas taxes. The state takes out fewer bond loans than other states and considers its funding a “pay as you go” system. The gas tax, the lowest in New England, has not been raised since 1991. The 2011 Legislature did away with a motor vehicle fee increase. That change has meant more $30 million a year in cuts to DOT.The $800 million expansion of I-93 from Salem to Manchester began in 2006, but has been delayed several times because of a lack of funding. Supporters of the expansion say it will update one of the country’s most congested highways and bring needed tourism revenue to the more isolated and less economically robust northern part of the state. Traffic on I-93 has increased 600 percent since the highway was built in the 1960s and approximately 80,000 cars now drive on it each day.Summary provided by StateImpact NH

Bedford Voters To Consider $30M Bond For Road Improvements

Voters in Bedford will decide next week whether to pass a $30 million bond to pay for a backlog of road improvements.

The bond goes before voters during Town Meeting on Tuesday and requires two-thirds support to pass.

The town has listed roughly 150 roads spanning 60 miles that would be repaired through the bond.

Public Works Director Jim Stanford says the bond would go a long way toward addressing the town’s backlog of repairs to roads, bridges and culverts.

“The Town Council has dubbed it ‘Leave No Road Behind.’ Essentially, any road that hasn’t been worked on in the last 20 years or constructed within the last 20 years would receive some sort of major treatment. Many of those roads are in failure right now.”

If approved, construction would start next year and go through 2022.

The Town Council and Town Manager support the bond, while the Bedford Taxpayers Association recently came out against it.

The town hasn’t increased its annual maintenance budget in more than a decade, but voters did pass an $8 million road repair bond in 2003 and another $12 million bond in 2005.

An additional $12 million from an infrastructure bond passed in 2011 is slated for road repairs.

Michael serves as NHPR's Program Director. Michael came to NHPR in 2012, working as the station's newscast producer/reporter. In 2015, he took on the role of Morning Edition producer. Michael worked for eight years at The Telegraph of Nashua, covering education and working as the metro editor.
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