T4 applauds transit flexibility bill introduced by Reps. Carnahan and LaTourette
October 14, 2011By Transportation for America
WASHINGTON, DC — This week, Rep. Russ Carnahan (D-MO) and Rep. Steven LaTourette (R-OH) introduced the Local Flexibility for Transit Assistance Act, which would give local transit agencies more options in how they choose to allocate federal funding. Sarah Kline, Policy Director at Reconnecting America, released the following statement on Transportation for America’s behalf:
“Representatives Carnahan and LaTourette have hit the nail on the head with this bill. In the midst of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, with gas prices wildly fluctuating, hard-working Americans need affordable transportation choices. But transit agencies across this country are having to cut service, leaving people stranded without a way to get to work, or to school, or to the doctor. This bill will help to ensure that people in cities large and small can continue to rely on public transportation to get them where they need to go.”
T4 America commends House leaders for seeking additional $100 billion in funding for transportation bill
September 27, 2011By Transportation for America
WASHINGTON, DC — House Republican leaders, in consultation with Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica, are actively seeking $100 billion in new revenue to fund reauthorization of the nation’s surface transportation bill. James Corless, director of Transportation for America, issued the following statement in response:
“We applaud the decision by House Republican leaders to obtain $100 billion in additional revenue for the next transportation bill. Investing in our nation’s infrastructure will help create jobs, increase our long-term competitiveness and improve safety.
“Now, with a commitment to sufficient funding levels, we look forward to working with Chairman Mica on a new bill that puts Americans to work fixing our nation’s roads and bridges, while improving access to safe and reliable travel options and holding states accountable for every taxpayer dollar.”
President Obama’s Ohio visit again highlights the vast and growing need to address America’s aging and deficient bridges
September 22, 2011By Transportation for America
On the same day the President visits a critical bridge in Cincinnati, these state and county level data and an interactive map of structurally deficient bridges across the U.S. shows that bridge repair needs touch every community.
President Obama’s visit to the Brent Spence Bridge bordering Ohio and Kentucky calls much-needed attention to the urgency of bridge repair and rehabilitation throughout the country. Those needs are clearly visible in the detailed state-by-state reports, and county level bridge data (including an interactive, searchable map of every deficient bridge in America) being made available today at http://t4america.org/resources/bridges/states/.
The President’s event comes on the heels of last week’s closure of the 49-year old Sherman Minton Bridge over the Ohio River between Louisville, Kentucky and New Albany, Indiana after cracks were found in the support structure. Like similar bridges nationwide, the heavily travelled bridge is crucial to the economy of both states and for commuters crossing the river to get to work.
Today, nearly 70,000 bridges nationwide— about one in nine —are classified as “structurally deficient,” in need of close monitoring and near-term repair, according to data from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Transportation agencies would need $70.9 billion to overcome the current backlog of deficient bridges.
“As the President has noted, a serious effort to address the backlog of structurally deficient bridges would be an immediate source of jobs, doing work that desperately needs to be done,” said James Corless, director of Transportation for America. “Our coalition members, in nearly every state of the union, have long noted this situation, and are gratified to hear the call echoed by high-profile leaders.”
Transportation for America’s spring report, “The Fix We’re In For: The State of Our Nation’s Bridges” tallied the structurally deficient bridges nationwide. T4 America is also making available county-by-county lists of structurally deficient bridges, and their rankings, for those who would like to evaluate the depth of their own local needs.
In addition to funding needed maintenance today, T4 America urges Congress to also enact tough guidelines in the next transportation bill to ensure that precious taxpayer dollars prioritize making existing bridges safe. One logical step forward would be Senator Ben Cardin’s Preservation and Renewal of Federal-Aid Highways Act, which would require the Secretary of Transportation to establish “state of good repair” standards for highways and bridges that receive federal funding, ensuring that federal dollars are targeted toward the most pressing needs first and holding states accountable for improving the condition of their infrastructure.
“Congress has a dual task right now of giving a weak economy a needed boost while creating the conditions for future growth and economic opportunity,” Corless added. “Providing a near-term boost to rebuild infrastructure, coupled with a comprehensive update of the long-term federal transportation bill will put people to work building the physical assets that will serve the country for decades to come. We appreciate the President’s focus on infrastructure and look forward to working with both the administration and Congress on getting something done.”
You can learn more about “The Fix We’re in For: The State of Our Nation’s Bridges” at http://t4america.org/resources/bridges/
Senate committee preserves transportation funding, restores high-speed rail money
September 21, 2011By Stephen Lee Davis
Senate appropriators approved their draft bill setting spending levels for housing and transportation departments for 2012, preserving competitive intermodal programs and approving an amendment to restore a small amount of high-speed rail funding
A day after a markup in subcommittee that preserved TIGER and Amtrak funding but cut high-speed rail entirely, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved its 2012 Transportation-HUD spending bill Wednesday. An amendment offered by Senators Durbin, Lautenberg, Feinstein and Landrieu to provide $100 million for high speed and intercity passenger rail passed by voice vote in committee, meaning votes weren’t recorded.
Contrasted with the House’s 2012 bill, the Senate version doesn’t make the same drastic cuts from current funding levels for transportation and preserves important programs like TIGER that foster competition and use performance and bang for the buck as yardsticks to decide which projects to fund.
“The Senate is to be commended for preserving the current levels of investment in transportation,” said T4 America director James Corless. “With thousands of Americans out of work, now is not the time to cut spending on transportation and add to the unemployment rolls. Competitive programs like TIGER have been instrumental in starting to move toward a more performance-based system that takes a range of factors into account when deciding what projects to fund. The Senate also protected the vital New Starts funding to help expand urgently needed public transportation systems across the country, as well as funding for Amtrak and passenger rail.”
“While $100 million is far less than recent yearly spending on high-speed rail, the vote by Senate appropriators today to restore funding for high speed rail is a statement that this program is important to the country’s future and should continue to be funded,” continued Corless. ”This modest investment will help continue states’ momentum in building and planning their passenger rail networks; networks that are important to giving Americans other options for traveling within and through regions.”
The House and Senate are likely to pass a “continuing resolution” in the coming weeks to continue funding the government for another few months, meaning that at some point the House and Senate will have to come together to reconcile their very two different versions of this bill.
Closure of Ohio River Bridge Highlights Need for Robust Investment in Infrastructure
September 15, 2011By Transportation for America
Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels made a prudent decision to close the 49-year-old Sherman Minton bridge over the Ohio River between Louisville, Kentucky and New Albany, Indiana last Friday after cracks were found in support girders, highlighting once more the pressing need for strong federal investments in fixing our country’s infrastructure.
“This incident is powerful evidence that our country’s infrastructure needs cross both party lines and state lines,” said T4 America Director James Corless.
”Thousands of bridges, just like this one, are nearing the end of their designed lifespans and can become structurally deficient at any time, resulting in millions of dollars in repair costs that can quickly sap a state’s budget. Considering the average U.S. bridge is 42 years of age and designed for a 50-year lifespan, stories like this will become more common without aggressive investment in infrastructure and prioritizing repair.”
State officials in Kentucky and Indiana are investigating whether they need to replace the bridge, which would cost upwards of $500 million, according to one estimate, which pales in comparison to what each state spends on bridge repair and maintenance each year overall. Indiana spent only $47 million and Kentucky $136 million on bridge repair in 2008.
“President Obama’s American Jobs Act is exactly the kind of infusion of federal money that’s needed in Kentucky, Indiana and states all across the country facing similar needs and backlogs of deficient bridges. If passed, Kentucky could see $418 million and Indiana could see $650 million in flexible federal transportation dollars to spend on critical needs just like this bridge, which carries as many as 80,000 cars per day. There’s a clear need for the federal government to step up with funding to address these sorts of needs — especially bridges like this that carry a critical interstate highway through a region and connect two states across a river.”
“States also need to be held accountable to address the growing backlog of structurally deficient bridges with their federal transportation dollars,” Corless added. “States can currently spend half of their money dedicated to bridge repair on almost any other type of project. Today the federal program lacks a system to ensure that federal money goes to repair the worst bridges or address the backlog before new highways are built. For example, though Kentucky received $390 million in stimulus dollars and 10 percent of its bridges are structurally deficient, they only spent 26 percent of the stimulus on maintaining their current system, the fourth worst ratio in the country in a study from Smart Growth America.”
“One logical step forward would be Senator Ben Cardin’s Preservation and Renewal of Federal-Aid Highways Act, which would require the Secretary of Transportation to establish “state of good repair” standards for highways that receive federal funding, ensuring that federal dollars are targeted toward the most pressing needs first and holding states accountable for improving the condition of their systems.”
T4 America commends Speaker Boehner, Senate Leader Reid for agreement on clean transportation extension
September 12, 2011By Transportation for America
WASHINGTON, DC — Congressional leaders from both the House and Senate agreed Friday to extend SAFETEA-LU, the current surface transportation law, for six months at current funding levels and without policy changes. James Corless, director of Transportation for America, issued this statement in response:
“It is a good sign, indeed, that bipartisan negotiations between House Speaker John Boehner and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid resulted in an agreement that will keep Americans at work building our nation’s infrastructure. We are especially pleased that the extension funds the transportation program at existing levels and does not include divisive policy changes that deserve a full hearing and debate.
“The six-month timeline allows the relevant House and Senate Committees an opportunity to continue crafting a long-term authorization that protects and creates jobs, while investing in the travel options Americans want with the accountability they deserve. We look forward to working with Congress to get a new bill done next year.”
T4America Reaction to President’s speech on the American Jobs Act
September 8, 2011By Stephen Lee Davis
WASHINGTON, DC — James Corless, director of Transportation for America, issued this statement in response to President Obama’s speech on his proposed American Jobs Act:
“From the perspective of infrastructure investments, the President’s proposal is both ambitious and pragmatic. He called for immediate investments in the kind of transportation projects that create near-term jobs while providing long-term benefits to Americans and the economy. But he also laid the foundation for a national infrastructure bank that will help to leverage private investment and provide stable funding in the future. His plan would expand the successful TIGER program, which has made carefully targeted investments in those projects that compete best in sparking economic development, connecting people to jobs and daily needs, improving safety and affordability, and strengthening energy and economic security.
“The President was right to call on Congress again to break the gridlock and increase investment in infrastructure. To get America back on track, we need to set clear priorities to avoid misspending our precious dollars. Those priorities should include holding states and localities accountable for executing smart investment strategies, rebuilding our decaying infrastructure, and expanding the network to provide more convenient, safe and affordable travel options for all Americans. The alternative is lingering unemployment, gridlocked cities, stranded rural residents, hampered freight delivery and continued over-reliance on contested oil supplies.”
Transportation for America response to President’s call for “clean” extension of SAFETEA-LU
August 31, 2011By Stephen Lee Davis
WASHINGTON, DC — Today, President Obama stood with representatives of labor and business to call for a “clean” extension of the existing transportation funding measures, and a long-term transportation authorization. James Corless, director of Transportation for America, issued this statement in response:
“Extending the gas tax and the current law that allocates transportation funds ought to be the bipartisan no-brainer it has been historically. To play politics with the extension would deliver a gratuitous shock to a struggling economy and to families relying on infrastructure-related paychecks.
Beyond that, the President is right to urge Congress to break the gridlock and adopt a fully funded, long-term authorization that will protect and create jobs while supporting a full-fledged economic recovery. To be most effective, the updated transportation bill needs to ensure timely project approvals, as the President noted; but more importantly, it needs to set clear priorities to avoid misspending our precious dollars. Those priorities should include holding states and localities accountable for smart investment strategies and for repairing and updating existing infrastructure, while expanding the network to provide more convenient, safe and affordable travel options for all Americans.”
Transportation for America responds to House T&I authorization proposal
July 7, 2011By Transportation for America
WASHINGTON, DC – Today, House Transportation and Infrastructure committee chairman John Mica (R-FL) released an outline of principles for a proposed six-year transportation bill. The $230 billion, six-year proposal represents a 35 percent spending reduction with potentially significant impacts on road and bridge repair and maintenance, as well as public transportation and safer walking and bicycling. James Corless, director of Transportation for America, had this to say in response to the Chairman’s proposal on state flexibility, transit funding and streamlining project delivery:
“We commend Chairman Mica and his fellow drafters on the push to get this long-stalled bill moving, and we appreciate the effort to consolidate programs, leverage non-federal resources and deliver projects more quickly. However, we are skeptical that investments at this level can meet the country’s infrastructure needs.
A bill this small would need to be constrained to three key goals:
- Maintaining our national highway and bridge system, which is quickly approaching its mid-life crisis;
- Providing more options such as public transportation, vanpools and safer streets for bicyclists and pedestrians;
- Promoting accountability through meaningful performance measures and a more strategic approach to transportation planning.
“Chairman Mica’s proposal to give states broader latitude needs strong provisions for accountability on national goals, such as economic prosperity, energy independence, equal access to opportunity and environmental stewardship. However, this emphasis on the state level cannot come at the expense of the places that are feeling the brunt of our inadequate investments to this point: local communities in both urban and rural locales. We are particularly concerned at the proposal to eliminate dedicated funding that helps provide more safe options for walking and biking.
“While Chairman Mica indicated an intent to preserve the historic share of 20 percent for transit, the overall effect is a devastating cut that leaves us well short of the amount required to meet rising demand for transit service, especially in this time of severe fiscal constraints.
“The focus on removing bureaucratic impediments to progress is encouraging, but the details on how this is accomplished are critical. We look forward to seeing more of those and other details of the bill, and we hope the Chairman will follow through on his pledge to consider other ideas in a bipartisan fashion as his committee crafts a bill that preserves our infrastructure, expands our options and hold agencies accountable for performance.”
Most Aging Baby Boomers Will Face Poor Mobility Options
June 14, 2011By Transportation for America
Atlanta, GA tops the rankings for large metro areas with poor access to transit for seniors
By 2015, more than 15.5 million Americans 65 and older will live in communities where public transportation service is poor or non-existent, a new study shows. That number is expected to continue to grow rapidly as the baby boom generation “ages in place” in suburbs and exurbs with few mobility options for those who do not drive.
The report, Aging in Place, Stuck without Options, ranks metro areas by the percentage of seniors with poor access to public transportation, now and in the coming years, and presents other data on aging and transportation.
The analysis by the Center for Neighborhood Technology evaluates metro areas within each of five size categories. It shows that in just four years, 90 percent of seniors in metro Atlanta will live in neighborhoods with poor access to options other than driving, the worst ranking among metro areas with populations over 3 million. In that size category, metro Atlanta is followed by the Riverside-San Bernardino, CA metro area, along with Houston, Detroit and Dallas.
Kansas City tops the list for metros of 1-3 million, followed by Oklahoma City, Fort Worth, Nashville and Raleigh-Durham. In smaller areas like Hamilton, OH, 100 percent of seniors will have poor access to public transportation. These conditions present a daunting challenge to local communities as a larger share of their population demands increased mobility options.
“The baby boom generation grew up and reared their own children in communities that, for the first time in human history, were built on the assumption that everyone would be able to drive an automobile,” said John Robert Smith, president and CEO of Reconnecting America and co-chair of Transportation for America. “What happens when people in this largest generation ever, with the longest predicted lifespan ever, outlive their ability to drive for everything? That’s one of the questions we set out to answer in this report.”
“The vast majority of people age 50-plus want to stay in their homes for as long as possible, according to our research,” said AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond. “When they do move, they most often want to stay in their communities.”
Indeed, such a small percentage of older American actually relocate that researchers already are seeing the emergence of so-called “naturally occurring retirement communities.” That phenomenon is growing as baby boomers begin to turn 65. Today, about four in five seniors age 65 and older live in suburban or rural communities that are largely car-dependent.
“Communities like Atlanta have an enormous challenge before us, but it’s also an opportunity,” said Cathie Berger, division chief of the Area Agency on Aging in Atlanta. “It’s true that many of our suburban neighborhoods were built without considering the needs of an aging population. But many of the steps we could take to fix that – improving public transportation service, retrofitting our streets to be safer for walking – will improve quality of life for the entire community.”
Without access to affordable travel options, seniors age 65 and older who no longer drive make 15 percent fewer trips to the doctor, 59 percent fewer trips to shop or eat out and 65 percent fewer trips to visit friends and family, than drivers of the same age, research shows. As the cost of owning and fueling a vehicle rises, many older Americans who can still drive nonetheless will be looking for lower-cost options.
The transportation issues of an aging America are national in scope, and cash-strapped state and local governments will be looking for federal support in meeting their needs, Smith said. As Congress prepares this summer to adopt a new, long-term transportation authorization, Aging in Place, Stuck without Options outlines policies to help ensure that older Americans can remain mobile, active and independent:
- Increase funding support for communities looking to improve service such as buses, trains, vanpools, paratransit and ridesharing;
- Provide funding and incentives for transit operators, nonprofit organizations, and local communities to engage in innovative practices;
- Encourage state departments of transportation, metropolitan planning organizations, and transit operators to involve seniors and the community stakeholders in developing plans for meeting the mobility needs of older adults;
- Ensure that state departments of transportation retain their authority to “flex” a portion of highway funds for transit projects and programs;
- Include a “complete streets” policy to ensure that streets and intersections around transit stops are safe and inviting for seniors.
To view the full report and to see the extended rankings, please visit http://t4america.org/resources/seniorsmobilitycrisis2011/
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- Transportation bill being finalized, window closing quickly! Call your rep and senator
May 23, 2012 - Saving a transit system and turning the tide for the future of a mid-sized city
May 15, 2012 - U.S. communities step up, hoping a strong federal commitment to infrastructure will follow
May 10, 2012 - Graphic: A closer look at the Senate MAP-21 vote by state
March 27, 2012 - Fixing the House bill: Cutting regulatory burdens and bureaucracy
March 15, 2012
- Transportation bill being finalized, window closing quickly! Call your rep and senator
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