"We're very disappointed and wish the outcome had been different," Initiative 912 organizer Brett Bader told The Associated Press. "We said in the final weeks of the campaign that it would be close, and it was.

"We had a map and a plan to get across the finish line and we made our goals in every county but two, King and Snohomish. It's tough. You don't win statewide with those kind of numbers."

The repeal measure was being swamped 65 percent to 35 percent in King and 55-45 in Snohomish. Overall, the initiative was trailing 53 percent to 47 percent as more absentee ballots were counted Wednesday.

Gov. Christine Gregoire and other leaders said the devastation of Hurricane Katrina and rockslides that shut down Washington's main east-west freeway helped make the case for keeping the record gas-tax increase in place.

Kelly Evans, campaign director for the opposition, said it was a clear-eyed decision by voters to forgo a tax break in favor of fixing a crumbling and crowded transportation system.

"People were discerning," she said in an interview declaring victory. "When they sat down and really thought about what is at stake with 912, they decided to make the investments now.

"You have to give voters credit. For a long time we haven't invested in our infrastructure and it's time. That's what our voters have said. Emotion was on the other side, the `send Olympia a message' emotion. Ours was a logical argument about safety and infrastructure."

The governor went to the Department of Transportation headquarters to celebrate.

"There is joy at WashDOT today," said Linda Mullen, spokeswoman for the department. After the celebration, officials quickly rolled up their sleeves to prepare for a major construction boom, she said.

The state will probably kick off the 16-year construction program by asking the state Finance Committee to sell about $90 million worth of bonds in mid-December. Early projects include an Interstate 90 bridge overpass in Moses Lake, cabled median barriers, a traffic signal in Belfair and an I-5 interchange in Everett.

Supporters and opponents of the record 9½-cent gas tax increase were sifting through possible explanations for the voters' decision to pass on tax relief.

The Katrina angle was frequently mentioned. Another factor cited was the Legislature's decision to load their new 16-year highway plan with goodies for King County. The state's largest county provided the full margin of votes to keep the taxes and the 274 road and bridge projects.

Also helping: Conservatives were divided, with some key GOP leaders and much of the business community promoting the tax package. Democrats, including environmentalists, were united against repeal.

And initiative foes and pollsters said motorists' initial sticker shock over soaring gas prices has died down, particularly with prices recently falling.

"The apex of the pro-912 campaign was in June when people were at their angriest," said opposition spokesman Mark Funk. "Those (poll) numbers started to drop post-Katrina and after we started our media campaign."

The governor frequently referred the devastation of New Orleans as a stark reminder of the need to get to work on Seattle's Alaskan Way Viaduct and other earthquake-vulnerable structures.

"The viaduct is our levees," Gregoire said. "An earthquake is our hurricane."

Then just two days before voters went to the polls, a rockslide closed Interstate 90 near Snoqualmie Pass. An earlier slide crushed three 28-year-old women.

"I-90 was a wakeup call this week," Gregoire said in an interview. "That six-mile stretch has been identified as a critical area that must be upgraded."

House Transportation Chairman Ed Murray, D-Seattle, said lawmakers set the stage by passing a smart, balanced project list and by passing transportation reforms.

"We were bold. We were courageous and the voters respond to leadership," he said. "Then news stories showed the impact of failing to maintain the levees in New Orleans and showed us the I-90 (rockslide) problems. That really focused attention on safety issues."

Independent pollster Stuart Elway said the initiative began to lose steam as people got used to the "new normal" of high gas prices and as they saw the hurricane damage to the Gulf Coast and related it to natural disasters that are likely to befall Washington.

More and more, they decided it wasn't a smart time to "disinvest" in roads and bridges, he said.

The Legislature's transportation list was heavy on projects needed and wanted by King County and central Puget Sound communities, areas that voted to keep the new tax. The viaduct alone is in line for over $2 billion, and rebuilding the State Route 520 floating bridge will get $500 million.

I-912 was losing, 47 percent to 53 percent, with about 62 percent of the expected vote counted. The tally was 516,644 in favor, 577,214 against. Hundreds of thousands of absentee ballots remained uncounted Wednesday, leaving the slight, if improbable, possibility the initiative could still pass.

King, Snohomish, Kitsap and Thurston counties in the populous, congested central Puget Sound were voting against the rollback plan, with King County 64 percent in opposition. Also voting no were Jefferson, San Juan, Island, Clark, Whitman and Walla Walla counties.

The initiative promised to erase the 3-cent increase that went into effect in July, as well as the three upcoming annual increases that lawmakers approved in advance. That would have rolled the tax back to the old rate of 28 cents.

A delighted Gregoire told The Associated Press she senses a sea change.

"I hope this is a sign that we're going to stop saying `no' to everything and start investing in our future," she said.