Foxconn takes our road money

The news keeps getting better for Foxconn, but worse for the rest of us. That is because we have learned that the state’s plans to build roads to build that new Foxconn plant will take some $90 million from the budget for other roads in the state in our current budget. So while Foxconn gets new roads, the rest of us get to keep driving over potholes. And our roads are only going to get worse. Lawmakers approved a state budget containing less money for roads than Governor Walker wanted, and this takes another $90 million from that. This loss of road funding leave funding for fixing Wisconsin’s roads about $870 million short of what is estimated to be needed to maintain road conditions just at current levels for the next decade. Wisconsin’s roads are already rated among the worst in the nation. Clearly they will get worse before they get better. This $90 million in road money is on top of the $3 billion the state is providing Foxconn to build its plant. It is on top of the $400 million the state is committing to improving the interstate near the plant, and on top of the $764 million provided the company in local property tax incentives. The news keeps getting better for Foxconn, but the rest of Wisconsin is getting the short end of the stick.