Actually, the first federal gasoline taxes in the US predate the interstate highway system and were part of a bill that raised taxes on a variety of goods in th

Actually, the first federal gasoline taxes in the US predate the interstate highway system and were part of a bill that raised taxes on a variety of goods in the name of general revenue. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revenue_Act_of_1932 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Revenue_Act_of_1932 and therefore not really related to maintenance. Furthermore, a great proportion of gasoline tax revenue in the modern era is not spent on highway maintenance but rather diverted to other earmarked purposes https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_taxes_in_the_United_States https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuel_taxes_in_the_United_Sta... A lack of political will might prevent Congress from raising the tax that would most economically efficiently raise revenue for highway maintenance, but it is not the primary roadblock (what is it with me and the puns today?) that prevents Congress from spending less-economically-efficiently-raised funds on infrastructure maintenance.