TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) -- Joined by two former Republican governors who championed Kansas highway programs, Democratic Gov. Mark Parkinson made a pitch for more projects.

Parkinson said Monday that while Kansas is ranked tops in the nation for its road system by Reader's Digest, it won't take long for that 10,000-mile system to deteriorate.

Speaking with Parkinson were Gov. Mike Hayden, who passed a 10-year plan in 1989, and Gov. Bill Graves, who pushed through a second, 10-year plan in 1999.

Hayden and Graves said the magazine's ranking was a testament to the vision more than 20 years ago to improve what Hayden described as a deplorable condition of Kansas' roads.

Parkinson has proposed a sales tax increase to lay the foundation for another comprehensive transportation program.