Mayoral candidate Ken Svoboda called for a seven-year moratorium on new road construction in the western two-thirds of Nebraska, except for on the interstate.

If more state road construction dollars flowed into eastern Nebraska, namely Lincoln and Omaha, those two economic engines would be able to produce even more revenue for the rest of the state, he reasoned.

Svoboda said he first proposed the admittedly “politically incorrect” idea as chairman of the I-80 Commission.

In recent years, Lancaster County has gotten back about 29 cents of every dollar it contributed to the Highway Trust Fund through local fuel taxes, motor vehicle sales taxes and vehicle registrations.

“We’re state residents and we don’t mind subsidizing road construction in the western two-thirds of the state to a certain degree,” Svoboda said. “But there’s more economic development benefit in having roads built in the eastern third of the state than in the western two-thirds.”

He criticized his mayoral opponent, former Sen. Chris Beutler, for not being able to convince lawmakers to make the gas tax formula more equitable to Lincoln.

“What was Chris Beutler doing for 24 years in the Legislature to make sure the residents of Lincoln received their fair share?” Svoboda asked.

He said he’d work with state lawmakers to negotiate a better deal for Lincoln taxpayers.

But Beutler said the city only asked for his help on the gas tax formula in recent years, and last year he helped  get the formula changed to direct an extra million dollars to Lincoln.

He said he agrees that more road dollars should go to Lincoln, but said Svoboda’s call for a moratorium would just alienate western lawmakers.

Svoboda’s proposed moratorium was part of a broader roads plan unveiled Thursday.

He said the city has spent too much money buying property and right-of-way in certain areas such as near 48th and O streets.

The city’s precious few street construction dollars have largely gone into the Antelope Valley project, 48th and O revitalization and O Street widening.

“A lot of money was focused in one area instead of bonding it and leveraging it for more diverse projects,” he said.

If elected mayor, he said he would:

n Prioritize new roads based on their ability to immediately increase tax revenue. For example, a  road that would provide access to a new retail project or office park.

n Create new standards for street construction and eliminate street medians on many arterial streets.

n Consider converting turning lanes into transitional lanes —which are one-ways at certain times of the day — rather than widening streets in areas such as 27th Street between South Street and Nebraska 2. Omaha uses this concept midtown, on  Dodge Street.

n Fight to change the gas tax formula to direct more money to Lincoln and Lancaster County.

Beutler said Svoboda’s roads proposal just makes do with what little money the city has for roads, while his proposal would help fix the street financing problem.

“He seems to be describing how he’s going to use scarce funding,” he said. “But that’s not the issue. The issue is how do we get enough funding.”

Beutler proposed a plan in November to devote a portion of new sales tax revenue generated by developments at the city’s edge toward street construction and water and sewer service in those areas.

It would be similar to a tax increment financing district.

Reach Deena Winter at 473-2642 or dwinter@journalstar.com.