Transportation-revenue forecast highlights worsening funding situation – The September transportation revenue forecast “worsens an already bad outlook for transportation funding,” says the Washington Research Council.
Underlying the new gas tax forecast is a new forecast of gasoline consumption. Previously, WSDOT had estimated that consumption would increase by 8.5% from 2023 to 2033. Now, over the same period, consumption is expected to decrease by 8.4%. This new trajectory is more in line with what is expected at the national level by the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
The September forecast estimates that transportation revenues will be $6.881 billion in 2023–25, $7.081 billion in 2025–27, and $7.209 billion in 2027–29. These numbers are lower than had been estimated for the biennia in the Feb. 2024 forecast (on which the current budget was based): by $109.8 million (1.6%) for 2023–25, by $259.1 million (3.5%) for 2025–27, and by $368.9 million (4.9%) for 2027–29.
Read the full analysis by the Washington Research Council here.