U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy Calls For Gas Tax Hike For Infrastructure Upgrades
HARTFORD, Conn. (CBSNewYork) -- Connecticut and every other state in the nation is dealing with failing infrastructure – and no money to pay for repairs.
As WCBS 880 Connecticut Bureau Chief Fran Schneidau reported Friday, U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) has suggested a way to fund the badly-needed repairs.
U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy Calls For Gas Tax Hike For Infrastructure Upgrades
On Thursday morning, a 118-year-old swing bridge over the Norwalk River got stuck in the open position. The failure of the Walk Bridge caused five hours of delays on the Metro-North New Haven Line.
The bridge failure had Murphy calling for a hike in the federal gas tax to fund infrastructure improvements. He said the two-step increase will help Connecticut and every other state pay for bridge and road repairs.
Murphy noted that the Federal Highway Trust funded by the gas tax will run out of money this summer.
"Why? Because we spend twice as much money on roads and rails in the country than we take in every year in gas tax revenue, because we haven't raised the gas tax in 20 years," Murphy said.
The tax now at 18 cents nationwide would go up 6 cents in 2015, and another 6 cents later on, under Murphy's proposal. Murphy said the tax hike is politically unpopular, but he called on Congress to pass the 12-cent hike.
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