The director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials is calling for ending the current per-gallon fuel tax to avert what he calls the "transportation fiscal cliff."

John Horsley, who is stepping down from his AASHTO post after 14 years, advocated for a sales tax on fuel at a rate high enough to avert a transportation-funding crash that he said could come as early as 2014. The current tax structure represents most of the receipts that go toward the ever-shrinking Highway Trust Fund.

"Fully supporting the program through highway user fees, rather than through transfers from the U.S. Treasury, would reduce the federal deficit by $150 million over 10 years," Horsley said, during a keynote address at the Transportation Research Board annual conference in Washington, D.C. "The cost of the reform to taxpayers would be less than $1 per week, per vehicle."

Government audits note the Highway Trust Fund will run out of operating money in a few years. Funding this program will be among the leading issues transportation authorizers in the House and Senate tackle in the 113th Congress. Horsley said there is support in the Senate for restoring the depleting fund. Garnering enough support from House lawmakers is more challenging.

House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) "was with us in the last cycle, and we got there," Horsley said. "But the question is, what kind of sustained revenue measures can you pass? We're looking for a tax reform proposal."

With funds quickly depleting and gridlock on Capitol Hill worsening, fixing the country's transportation woes does not look very likely, some experts say. Without federal funds to rebuild old infrastructure, roads and transit programs, transportation systems are likely to break down.

Speaking before Horsley's farewell speech, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said finding ways to pay for myriad road and infrastructure programs is going to be "what the debate will be about" in the 113th Congress.

Horsley will be succeeded by Frederick "Bud" Wright, who most recently was a consultant to Lindsay Transportation Solutions/Barrier Systems Inc., a manufacturer of products used in highway lane management and safety.