In 1964, Governor Albertis S. Harrison, Jr. requested the Virginia Advisory Legislative Council to study the problems which might exist with respect to the urban highway program. At the end of its two-year study, the Council made the following recommendations, all of which were adopted by the General Assembly in the 1966 session:

(1) That the Urban System continue to include municipalities with 3,500 or greater population, as provided by existing statutes.

(2) That the Department of Highways allocate funds for construction to municipalities on the basis of relative needs.

(3) That the Department of Highways be authorized to acquire by purchase, gift or the exercise of the power of eminent domain rights-of-way in municipalities on State participating construction projects, if requested by the municipality.

(4) That municipalities under 3,500 population which maintain their own secondary roads be paid at the cost per mile expended by the Department of Highways on secondary roads in other municipalities under 3,500 population where the roads are maintained by the State.

(5) That the annual rate of $10,000 per mile to municipalities of 3,500 population or greater for primary route extensions, as provided by § 33-35.2 of the Code, be continued, but that the annual rate of $800 per mile for other streets, as provided by § 33-35.4, be increased to $1,000 per mile.

(6) That the Virginia Advisory Legislative Council be authorized to continue its study of the Urban System of Highways until the 1968 Session of the General Assembly, during which period the Department of Highways expects to complete its integrated transportation studies of major urban areas, as required of it by the United States Bureau of Public Roads.

As a result of further study, in the 1966-68 interim, the Council made another report to the 1968 General Assembly. Of the recommendations made at that time, the following were adopted by the General Assembly:

(1) During the biennium 1968-1970 the State Highway Commission should set aside a minimum of five million dollars each year for the advance purchase of rights-of-way.

(2) The present allowance to municipalities for maintenance, improvement, construction or reconstruction of streets, not a part or an extension of the primary system, should be increased from $1,000 to $1,100.

(3) The study of urban streets and highways by the Virginia Advisory Legislative Council, with the cooperation of the State Highway Department and other State agencies, should be continued.

The Council has continued its study of the urban system of highways with the assistance of the Department of Highways. We attach as Appendix B to this report the Department's report of December 15, 1969 entitled "Into the 70's". At the request of the Council, this report has already been forwarded to all members of the General Assembly. The Department of Highways' Annual Report, which contains valuable statistics, has also been sent to all members.

The report "Into the 70's" makes it clear that the goals of the Highway Commission's nine-year program of road construction, endorsed by the 1966 General Assembly, will not be completed by the target date of 1975 within existing sources of revenue. The delay in the completion of the interstate system, originally planned for 1972, is due largely to delays in federal funding, and is, therefore, beyond State control. The anticipated delays in the arterial, primary, secondary and urban systems will be due to a shortage of revenues caused by the addition of mileage, higher construction standards, and inflation. The Highway Commission's report estimates a gap of $1,149 million in the program on June 30, 1975. The existence of so large a deficit makes it necessary to decide whether revenues should be increased, and priorities changed, so that the most vital portions of the highway system may be completed.