The number of public-private partnerships in the U.S. transportation sector has soared to record levels in recent years and continues to climb, according to a new study from the U.S. Department of Transportation.


"This nationwide trend on the part of state and local governments is further proof that innovative approaches to financing and managing transportation are increasingly attractive compared to traditional tax and spend methods," said Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters. "States and local governments across the country are recognizing public-private partnerships are an effective means to deliver transportation projects."

The new report found that more transportation public-private partnerships were completed over the last three years than in any other compatible time period in history. According to the report, more than 20 major highway and transit projects are currently being conducted in partnership with the private sector at various stages of development in the United States.

Peters said the use of public-private partnerships is increasing at record pace due to their proven track record of relieving congestion and encouraging infrastructure development. They do this by substituting or adding private capital for fuel tax revenue and helping leaders tap into the more than $400 billion of private capital available globally today for investment in infrastructure.

Earlier this year, however, the Government Accountability Office, in a report on highway public-private partnerships, predicted those finance schemes can create costly highway monopolies. In that report, the GAO said any benefits of public-private partnerships come with trade-offs that overlook public interest and are costly to the public sector. For example, tolls on privately operated highways will likely be higher than on publicly operated toll roads, according to the report. The GAO also criticized the limited efforts to systematically determine the public interest and to generate a cost-benefit analysis for each project.

The American Trucking Associations is against using public-private partnerships to fund infrastructure, saying it ultimately can be more costly to the motoring public than traditional funding solutions and may not sufficiently consider the public good.

A full copy of the report, "Innovation Wave: An Update on the Burgeoning Private Sector Role in U.S. Highway and Transit Infrastructure," can be found at www.fhwa.dot.gov/ppp/dotpppreport071808.doc