The day we are born is the day we start dying. I know it is kind of a sobering way to start a story about our state's crappy roads but there is an analogy I want to make. That analogy is this, your car starts falling apart the minute you drive it off of your dealer's lot. A large part of the rapid attrition of your automobile is those crappy roads and bridges you have to drive on if you live in Louisiana.

The fact that our state's often poorly maintained roads and bridges have led to the early demise of many a vehicle in the state has been suspected for many years. That fact has now been confirmed by the non-profit group TRIP. They've released the results of a survey they have done on Louisiana roads and their findings are jaw-dropping.

The TRIP report suggests that vehicle operating costs in our state in addition to traffic accidents and related congestion delays related to the state's failing infrastructure cost our state's drivers about $7.6 billion, with a "b", every year. 

Okay those figures, according to TRIP are for the entire state. How much do the poor roads, bridges, and assorted issues with our roadways cost you or me? The TRIP study found that you and I are paying about $667 dollars in operating costs every year.  It's the equivalent of adding an extra $55 dollars to your car note every month.

Legislation has been filed for the current session of our state's legislature that would address funding for transportation infrastructure. President Joe Biden has proposed an infrastructure improvement plan too. But right now, all that is talk. It is going to require actual action to improve this situation for our state's drivers.

Naturally, money is the driving force behind any road improvements and that is not something our state has an overabundance of at this time. Hopefully, President Biden's plan or a similar plan that is expected to be offered by leading Republicans will garner enough support to help our state fill the potholes and rebuild the bridges that are falling apart.

Just know that in the meantime, every time you shake the fillings out of your teeth when you hit a pothole you've just taken a few more minutes off the life and performance of your automobile. So, please drive safely.

Now, if you've got money to burn and don't mind a few bounces along the way our state's roadways do offer some interesting scenery. But make sure you watch the road too because you never know when that monster pothole is going to reach out and grab your vehicle.

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