Governor—Y26 transportation proposal adds small increase to town aid and advances several Addison County projects

A regional planning staff member told the Addison County Regional Planning Commission on April 16 that the governor—Y26 transportation proposal includes a 3% increase to Town Highway Aid and funding for a mix of engineering and construction projects across Addison County.

"First takeaway is that for Town Highway Aid, the governor proposed a 3% increase over FY25," the staff member said, calling the change a modest, cost-of-living-type increase. The presenter emphasized that several county projects appear in the proposed budget at different stages: some have construction dollars, some have only engineering money, and some are listed with no funding this year.

Why it matters: the governor—udget shapes which local paving, bridge and drainage projects can begin construction this year and which remain in scoping or engineering. For towns that rely on state grants or VTrans-managed programs, the presence or absence of FY26 funds affects timelines for repairs and safety improvements.

The presenter identified several notable items in the proposal affecting Addison County. Addison (Vermont Route 17) appears with roughly $545,000 listed for engineering and construction, with work hoped for summer 2026. Middlebury—ounty Route 125 is noted as a project on the state gency—alendar but "no money was included in the appropriation," the presenter said, meaning it is in the long-range plan but not funded for FY26.

On bridges, the meeting heard that $125,000 was allocated to engineering for the US 7 bridge in Ferrisburg, a sign that construction is still several years away. The presenter said there is maintenance planned for a railroad bridge on South Middlebrook Road and highlighted a failing culvert in downtown New Haven that is on VTrans' radar but not funded this year. He also described an emergency request for work on Ripton Bridge 13A, saying "just under $600,000 requested for construction" to replace a culvert that washed out in flooding.

Roadway and drainage work tied to paving projects include a program of culvert replacements that the presenter said will likely occur before paving. A scoping request for VT—16 between River Road and downtown Bristol remains on the state gency's radar but had no FY26 dollars. Cornwall has an engineering project for slope stabilization on VT—25; a Cornwall nd Middlebury safety study requested by the TAC is essentially complete and listed with no new money.

The region lso has bicycle, pedestrian and discretionary grant projects. Bristol received scoping funds for West Street; Middlebury's Exchange Street project was listed in the proposed budget with $0 initially, but the presenter said he understands the legislative process later allocated money though he did not know the amount. Middlebury also has $50,000 for engineering new sidewalks through a development area.

Aviation and rail work were highlighted: a rehabilitation of a bridge in Ferrisburg over Little Otter Creek was described as close to $1 million and expected to be constructed in FY26. At Middlebury Airport, planned projects include a new aviation fuel farm, engineering and an environmental assessment for a terminal building, and a snow removal equipment purchase listed at $420,000.

Staffing and local implementation plans were also on the agenda. The commission was told the regional planning office has hired one intern and plans to hire a second; interns will focus on culvert and road-erosion inventories, with Goshen and Whiting as top priorities and Ferrisburg and Lincoln potentially using their own Category A funds instead of regional support. The presenter warned that initial indications from VTrans and FHWA could require traffic counts on every paved road, which would be a substantial additional workload.

Other reminders and next steps: annual reports for the Municipal Road General Permit were due April 1, and the State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP) hearing is scheduled for May 6 at 5 p.m. The presenter said a PEL study discussed at a recent public open house is nearing final review and is expected to be wrapped up before FY26 begins; a previously planned presentation to the full commission was postponed and is likely to move to June.

The presenter nd commission members noted that many projects in the FY26 proposal are in engineering or scoping phases and will require additional funding, permitting and local coordination before construction. Several towns represented at the meeting reported ongoing local activity, including a recently completed sand-and-gravel shed in Ripton and planning steps toward salt-and-sand storage in Orwell.