Overview
The Village of Winthrop Harbor maintains about 37 miles of streets and alleys. Our 2024 Pavement Management Study rated about 70% of those streets in fair or poor condition, with a backlog of roughly $15.9 million in needed work. Keeping up would take an estimated $2.5 to $3 million a year.
Village street projects are paid for almost entirely with Motor Fuel Tax (MFT) money from the State of Illinois, plus transfers from the Village General Fund. No part of your property tax bill is set aside for roads. That state funding covers only a small share of what our streets need, and the gap is growing.
This page explains how road funding works, why it has fallen behind, and how the Village decides which streets get done first.
Roadway Studies & Plans
Understanding How Road Improvements Are Funded
Learn how the Village funds road improvements — including Motor Fuel Tax allocations, General Fund transfers, and the gap between available funding and infrastructure needs.
View Full ExplainerWhere Road Money Comes From
Motor Fuel Tax (MFT)
The State collects a tax on every gallon of fuel sold and shares part of it with cities and villages for local roads.
Village General Fund Transfers
When MFT falls short, the Village moves money from the General Fund — money that would otherwise support police, fire, parks, and other services.
Property Taxes
None are dedicated to roads. Of every property tax dollar paid, about 72 cents goes to the two school districts and about 12 cents comes to the Village — which must cover all Village services.
How the Motor Fuel Tax Works
It is a tax on gallons, not miles. The idea dates back nearly a century: the more you drive, the more fuel you buy, so the more you pay toward the roads.
Rate History
| Year | Rate / Notes |
|---|---|
| 1990 | State set the gas tax at 19 cents a gallon. |
| 1990–2019 | Rate stayed at 19 cents for nearly 30 years while construction costs kept rising. |
| 2019 | Rebuild Illinois plan doubled the tax to 38 cents a gallon and added automatic yearly increases tied to inflation. |
| 2026 | Rate is 48.3 cents a gallon; a scheduled July increase to 49.6 cents was put on hold for six months. |
- It is divided by population — the local share is split among municipalities based on how many people live there, not how many miles of road they maintain.
- It can only be spent on transportation — a 2016 amendment to the Illinois Constitution protects transportation dollars so they cannot be used for anything else.
- It comes with State rules — projects paid with MFT money must follow IDOT's local roads requirements for engineering, bidding, and paperwork, adding oversight and cost to every project.
Why Motor Fuel Tax Funding Is Falling Behind
Construction Costs Have Outpaced the Tax
Asphalt, concrete, equipment, and labor costs have climbed faster than MFT revenue. Illinois prevailing wage requirements also apply to public road work, which raises the cost of every project.
Cars Are Using Less Fuel
Today's vehicles travel much farther on a gallon of gas than the formula ever expected. Consider three neighbors who each drive 12,000 miles a year:
| Vehicle | Est. State Gas Tax Paid Per Year |
|---|---|
| Gas car (25 mpg) | about $232 |
| Hybrid (50 mpg) | about $116 |
| Electric vehicle | $0 |
Estimates at the 48.3 cent rate, shown for illustration. All three use the same streets, but only one pays the full share.
EV owners pay an extra $100 a year at registration instead of fuel taxes — but that money goes to the State and none of it reaches local streets. Hybrids pay no extra fee at all.
The bottom line: Revenue per mile driven keeps shrinking while the cost per mile of repair keeps rising.
What This Means for Winthrop Harbor
The gap is large
A single mile of fully rebuilt street can cost more than $1 million, and our entire yearly Motor Fuel Tax allotment does not rebuild one mile.
We can only do a few streets a year
In 2026, the Village resurfaced about one mile of 11th Street and 13th Street for $404,062 — roughly $111,000 under the engineer's estimate. Good bids help, but one mile a year cannot keep up with 37 miles of aging streets.
Waiting makes it more expensive
Pavement wears slowly at first, then quickly. A street that could be resurfaced today at a lower cost becomes a full reconstruction later at several times the price. Delayed work never stays the same price.
Streets and water mains are connected
Much of our water system is aging cast iron pipe. On Ben Court, the same six-inch main broke twice in one winter, under a street that had just been repaved in fall 2024. This is why we coordinate road work with water main work whenever we can.
How We Decide Which Streets Come First
"Why was their street done before mine?" It's one of the most common questions we get.
Every street in the Village is scored and ranked using the 2024 Pavement Management Study and the Public Works 3-Year Strategic Plan. We look at:
- Pavement condition score: How each street rated in the pavement study.
- Use and traffic: How heavily the street is used.
- What is underground: Whether water main work is planned beneath the street, so we don't repave a street we will soon need to dig up.
- Cost effectiveness: Catching streets before a lower-cost repair turns into a full rebuild.
What the Village Is Already Doing
Planning ahead
Using the 2024 Pavement Management Study and the 3-Year Strategic Plan to put every dollar where it does the most good.
Stretching repair dollars
In 2024 the Village bought a hot box patching trailer, which lets crews use hot-mix asphalt for longer-lasting pothole repairs instead of temporary cold patch.
Bidding competitively
Getting strong bids — like the 2026 11th and 13th Street project that came in $111,000 under the engineer's estimate.
Working with partners
Working with state legislators and the Illinois Municipal League on long-term road funding solutions.
Talking with residents
Holding public conversations, including the September 17, 2026 Town Hall, about road conditions and funding options.
Resource Center
These sources informed this page and are provided for residents who want to learn more.
Road Maintenance and Funding in Illinois
The State's official page on the 2019 capital plan. Notes Illinois had gone without a comprehensive multi-year capital plan since 2009, and that deferred maintenance backlogs for roads and transit alone have reached $30 billion.
A plain explanation of where gas tax money goes. MFT revenue moves into state construction funds and separate funds for municipalities, townships, and counties. A 2016 constitutional amendment limits MFT to transportation uses.
A clear breakdown of how the money is split. MFT is the state's largest transportation funding source at roughly $2.5 to $3 billion a year. Of the share going to local governments, municipalities receive 49.10%.
The State's own analysis of the long-term problem. IDOT expects electric vehicles and better fuel economy to reduce gasoline and diesel use over time, shrinking MFT receipts.
A regional look at the same issue across the Midwest. Explains that each July the Illinois MFT rises by the same amount as the Consumer Price Index.
How Potholes Form
A short, resident-friendly handout. Water from melting snow or rain seeps into cracks, freezes and expands, and repeated freezing and thawing leaves a cavity under the road that traffic then breaks through.
Useful for explaining why some potholes keep coming back. A patch fixes only the surface, not the underlying cause — such as pavement that is too thin or poorly drained — so the pothole can reappear quickly.
A quick news explainer. Frequent freezing nights and milder afternoons repeat the cycle again and again, which is why late winter is peak pothole season.
Covers how heavy plow trucks with steel blades scraping the asphalt make already weak spots more likely to break down. May require a subscription.
Road Life Expectancy in the Midwest
Freeze-thaw areas have shorter road life, especially where drainage is poor, and road salt can speed up the damage.
Cites Michigan DOT figures putting average asphalt road life at 15.5 years and concrete at 27.5 years before repairs are needed.
The federal case for fixing roads early. Describes the shift from fixing the "worst first" to "optimum timing" — using the right treatment on the right pavement at the right time.
One agency's preservation program cost about $100 million, while reaching the same road smoothness without preservation would have cost more than $1 billion.
Keeping a road in good condition is easier and cheaper than repairing one that is badly damaged.
Questions or Concerns?
To report a pothole or road concern, or to ask about upcoming street projects, contact the Public Works Department or visit Village Hall.
Submit a Service Request Online