YDOT warns preservation-only funding leaves little room for major projects; $500M I‑80/I‑25 interchange looms

Darren Westby, director of the Wyoming Department of Transportation, told the Joint Transportation Committee in Casper on Aug. 17 that the agency is operating under long-standing “preservation‑only” funding decisions and that state buying power has fallen sharply since 2010. “Our mission is to provide a safe and effective transportation system. That’s it. Plain and simple,” Westby said.

Why it matters: YDOT officials said federal funds now account for more than half of agency revenues while state revenue growth has been essentially flat; inflation and construction‑cost escalation mean the department can do far less work with the same nominal dollars than it could 15 years ago. Absent new revenue or a major outside match, YDOT and the Transportation Commission will have to prioritize which projects to build and which to defer.

YDOT’s finance team told the committee that federal revenues increased in recent surface transportation bills, but federal receipts are generated from fuel taxes that are not keeping pace with declining per‑mile fuel consumption. Dennis Byrne, YDOT chief financial officer, summarized the effect of…