On Nov. 1, the annual trek to the tire store will begin for the one-third of motorists in Eastern Washington who think studded tires are a must.

Before doing that, think about the orange-cone season that just came to a close. It was practically impossible to drive anywhere in the Inland Northwest without running into construction sites, but the money to finance road repairs is increasingly scarce.

Spokane citizens adopted a 10-year, $117 million street bond in 2004, but even that will cover only one-third of the streets in need of repairs. At a September transportation summit held in Spokane, the message was clear: Federal and state funds are drying up, so if you want to fix your roads or build new ones, you’ll have to ask local residents for the money.

In Spokane alone, reconstruction projects included:

“The downtown viaduct on Interstate 90, at $13 million.

“Sections of Maple and Ash, at about $5 million.

“Washington Street, just north of downtown, at about $2 million.

“Southeast Boulevard, at about $2.2 million.

“29th Avenue, at about $1.6 million.

“Crestline Street, at about $2 million.

“Browne’s Addition and Northeast Spokane streets, at about $1.6 million.

In 13 days, metal studs will begin battering these new surfaces, hastening the day when they will need to be repaired again. Studs inflict an estimated $10 million in road damage annually across the state. It is a costly tradition that is largely unnecessary.

Studs are highly overrated safety features, according to the Washington state Department of Transportation. Studies have shown they are useful only on those rare days when glare-ice conditions exist. What’s more, they don’t perform as well as studless tires in wet conditions, which are far more common in winter.

If you don’t believe that, you might ask your neighbors or friends how they are able to get around without studded tires. They’ll tell you that siping and advances in tire technology have rendered studs obsolete for most drivers. Costco has stopped stocking studded tires, partly because of a drop in demand.

The state ought to charge users of studded tires by issuing annual permits that would be affixed to windshields. The revenue would go toward road maintenance. That’s a less draconian solution than in some states, such as Minnesota and Wisconsin, which have banned studs. And it avoids the problem of a surcharge on the tires, which could drive buyers across the state line.

A permit might jolt drivers out of their annual ruts. And if it doesn’t, they’ll at least have to pay up for their false sense of security.