The Mineta Transportation Institute (MTI) has released findings from its 16th annual survey on public attitudes toward federal transportation funding. The results reveal that Americans are open to paying more — through higher gas taxes or a mileage-based fee — when they understand how the revenue will be used. 

Support increases significantly when proposed measures are tied to specific outcomes, particularly roadway safety and infrastructure maintenance.

“An astounding 75% of Americans told us they would support paying an extra 10 cents per gallon in federal gas taxes if the revenue raised were dedicated to maintaining the transportation system,” explains study co-author Asha Weinstein Agrawal, PhD. “And almost as many (72%) would support that same increase if the revenue were dedicated to improving safety.” 

She went on to explain that committing the new revenue to specific purposes that the public values is key to support for the tax increase. The survey found that support for the rate increase was only half as high if the revenue were dedicated to “transportation” in general (38%).

Rising Support

The survey series finds that support for increasing the federal gas tax rate has risen steadily since 2010. The figure below shows support for six options for raising the tax rate that differ only in the purposes for which the new revenue would be spent. Maintenance and safety improvements have always been the most popular options. 

Co-author Hilary Nixon, PhD, notes that the public also supports raising the tax rate to fund environmental objectives. “For more than 10 years, since 2013, at least half of the respondents have supported tax increases to pay for reducing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.”

Support for the different mileage fee options presented in the survey varied depending on the details of the tax option. 

A majority of respondents (51%) supported replacing the gas tax with a green-rate mileage fee if the rate were set at an average of 3 cents per mile. Still, it varied according to the vehicle’s pollution emissions — more polluting vehicles would be charged a higher rate, and less polluting vehicles would pay a lower rate. By contrast, only 44% supported a flat-rate mileage fee of 3 cents per mile for all drivers.

The 2026 Survey

New survey questions added this year explored which type of public or private organization respondents would prefer to verify the number of miles a vehicle drives, and whether a mileage fee should be adopted. 

The most popular options among those tested were two government entities: state agencies responsible for vehicle registration or tolling. Fewer people opted for private companies, like vehicle insurance companies or vehicle manufacturers. 

The survey also found that the majority of respondents supported lower mileage-fee rates for low-income drivers: almost two-thirds (63%) supported this option.

Other survey findings include:

• If the federal government adopted a mileage fee, almost two-thirds of respondents would support charging a lower rate to low-income drivers.

• 82% of respondents want the federal government to prioritize spending federal revenue to improve how transportation agencies respond to disasters like wildfires, floods, and blizzards.

• 72% of respondents want the federal government to prioritize spending revenue to install cameras to enforce stricter rules against reckless driving, such as speeding or running red lights.

The survey data for this study were collected from a nationally representative sample of 2,539 adults living in the U.S. Respondents completed the online survey in February 2025.