Pawlenty answers my question:

Gas tax increase appears certain "The funding would help whittle down the state's massive $1 billion-a-year backlog in road and bridge construction and maintenance." So apparently this backlog wasn't there a few days ago? And it wasn't there when he vetoed the transportation bill? Must have been under the rug. So what's your rule Pawlenty? Exactly how many people have to die before you listen to the elected representatives of Minnesota instead of special interests (not that the legislature isn't subject to the same thing, but in this case people and commerce wanted/needed infrastructure improvements, and not by sending the bill to our children)? Will your newfound conscience extend to our schools? Cleary the transportation bill wouldn't have prevented the collapse, but the bill was the deperate result of years and years of putting off maintenance and repairs, which most likely would have prevented the collapse the way things are looking so far.