MADIS0N, Wis. (AP) - A coalition of cities, towns, environmentalists and the elderly contends the state's 20-year, $20.2 billion highway plan is too heavy on pavement and light on public-transit alternatives.

The plan by the Department of Transportation calls for about 3,000 miles of new highway lanes, covering some 25,000 acres.  The coalition said the plan comes up $4.7 billion short of projected transportation revenues.

"The highway plan as presented by the DOT falls short both fiscally and environmentally," Ed Huck, executive director of the Alliance of Cities, said at a news conference Monday.

But the DOT said it did not put everything on its wish list into the plan.

"There are a lot of people who are equally unhappy we didn't go a lot further in building," said DOT spokeswoman Linda Thelke.  "We've been telling people they'll have to put up with a lot more congestion."

Garfield Stock, representing the American Association of Retired Persons, said the state needs to think about alternatives because many members of the rapidly aging population would rather not be compelled to drive.

 "Many of our elderly people probably shouldn't be out there driving, but the reason they do it is because they don't have any alternative," Stock said.

Dave Cieslewicz of the environmental planning group 1000 Friends of Wisconsin said the DOT plan fails to account for "induced travel," which is the notion that, as traffic congestion increases, developers tend to build more homes in areas served by smooth, fast highways.

Ernie Wittwer, administrator of the DOT's investment management division, said the plan does account for freight rail taking over some of the workload from trucks.

The DOT could have taken a "build" approach in the plan, aggressively building more roads, but instead chose a "balanced" approach, he said

But Rick Stadelman, executive director of the Wisconsin Towns Association, said a plan that is too aggressive in expanding highways will shift too many maintenance costs to local taxpayers.

"We need balance between funding state highways in general and the needs of local roads," he said.