Washington State highways and bridges are in need of a serious refresh. That’s according to a WSDOT official who told the Washington State Transportation Commission this month:

“We are in the early stages of critical failure due to lack of funding.” - Troy Suing, Director, Capital Program Development and Management, Washington State Department of Transportation

“Preservation” generally refers to the long-term work needed to sustain already existing infrastructure. WSDOT says it’ll need an additional $8 billion dollars over the next decade to do that work.

Jerry Cornfield at the Washington State Standard reported that while the Legislature did approve a 15.5 BILLION dollar budget for the next two years…. less than a billion dollars was earmarked for preservation over that time. That’s well short of the $1.6 Billion needed to keep pace with the wear and tear put on our state’s infrastructure.

GUEST: Senator Marko Liias - Chair of the WA State Senate Transportation Committee

LINKS: 

• ‘Early stages of critical failure’: Funding outlook is grim for WA road upkeep - WA State Standard
• Meeting Agenda – October 14-15, 2025 – Washington State Transportation Commission
• Washington State Transportation Commission - Meeting Video
• Move Ahead Washington
• Legislature approves bipartisan plan to fund Washington state transportation future

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.