With gas prices and construction costs climbing, state revenues slipping and Kansans driving fewer miles and paying fewer gas taxes, state leaders will need to get more creative about the next transportation plan's funding and more discriminating about its projects.

A new Kansas Department of Transportation long-range report projects a $1.5 billion annual gap between the $2.9 billion in needs and expected federal, local and state revenues.

The KDOT report maps out the need to modernize highways and increase capacity, and preserve roads and bridges.

As difficult as it promises to be to agree on the priorities, finding the money could be harder. The KDOT report mentions as possibilities higher vehicle fees and fuel taxes, local-option taxation methods, dedicated taxes on vehicle sales or auto parts, and even "vehicle miles traveled" fees on drivers.

Lawmakers also must ensure that the next plan doesn't burden the state with unmanageable debt or depend too much on drawing down the state general fund.

In short, lawmakers shouldn't pass a comprehensive transportation plan without also passing a comprehensive way to pay for it.

They also will need to account for changing driving habits and changing demographics, which could mean putting more money in other transportation avenues. And the whole job would be easier if lawmakers who dared to seek fiscal discipline in road construction weren't labeled antibusiness.

Kansas takes justifiable pride in its road system, in large part because of the farsighted commitment of state lawmakers and governors of the recent past to long-term transportation plans. But as the latest $13 billion transportation plan winds down, planning and passing the next one increasingly looks like it will be a political and fiscal feat.

Editorial by the Wichita Eagle