Your commute could get even worse

by. Jennifer Liberto and Jeanne Sahadi

Gridlock on Capitol Hill may yield more gridlock for American commuters who have to navigate congested, pothole-filled roads and highways, rundown rails or bad bridges.

The nation’s top transportation chief warned governors in all 50 states this week that the federal government will start delaying payments for projects that are currently underway to fix the nation’s roads and bridges.

The federal Highway Trust Fund, which finances transportation projects, is about to run out of money.

If Congress doesn’t act by Aug. 1, the Department of Transportation will trim and postpone payments to states. That could lead to interruptions in highway construction late this summer, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

“People will see it in traffic and they’ll see it in the condition of our roads,” said Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx at a breakfast with media on Tuesday. “I think they’ll see it in our lack of authority to fix our bridges and to put new capacity in place that this country needs.”

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