The Executive Order notes that sixteen percent of the population lives in rural counties and that these areas are essential to future economic competitiveness.

“Though rural communities face numerous challenges, they also present enormous economic potential,” according to the order. “The Federal Government has an important role to play in order to expand access to the capital necessary for economic growth, promote innovation, improve access to health care and education, and expand outdoor recreational activities on public lands

Tom Vilsack, the Secretary of Agriculture, will serve as chairman and will be joined Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Shaun Donovan, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lisa Jackson and dozens of other Cabinet and administration officials. Including these voices will ensure cross-jurisdiction solutions are considered.

The transportation challenges of rural areas are well-known, yet cannot be overstated.

More than 1.6 million rural households in America lack access to a personal vehicle, and rural areas and small towns tend to have higher concentrations of older adults and low-income families, precisely the groups that are less likely to drive or be able to afford a car. The need for increased travel options in these communities was outlined in our Dangerous by Design 2011 report, which found that while only 24 percent of Americans live in rural areas, the areas account for more than 27 percent of pedestrian fatalities.

As Congress continues its deliberations over the next transportation bill, rural transit needs have finally begun to receive more of the attention they deserve. Senator Tim Johnson, a South Dakota Democrat who chairs the Banking Committee that oversees transit, has called for additional resources to help small providers maintain service levels. And, Representative Shelley Moore Capito, a Republican member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee whose West Virginia district contains a number of rural counties, has said she will “certainly remain a strong voice for making roads safer for pedestrians” as the next bill is crafted.

Rural transportation needs were also the subject of recent report from the Rural Policy Research Institute, or RUPRI. You can read their full report, which includes a number of recommendations for the next transportation bill, here.

Photo courtesy of Huron County Transit.

The draft bill contains few surprises, as the White House hinted at many favored reforms in its 2012 budget blueprint in February. The proposal, titled the Transportation Opportunities Act, boosts resources for the U.S. Department of Transportation’s core highway program while making significant investments in transit. High-speed rail receives $8 billion upfront and $53 billion over six years, and $27.5 billion is directed toward a new Livability Program that folds many existing pedestrian, bicycling and transit elements under one umbrella.

The current Highway Trust Fund is renamed the Transportation Trust Fund to better reflect what has for decades been a multimodal program.

As an opening bid, the administration proposal offers a lot to like for transportation reformers. The plan embraces the bipartisan consensus around consolidating duplicative programs and includes strong State of Good Repair standards for both highways and transit. Plus, $31.9 billion is directed toward new merit-based Transportation Leadership Awards targeting states that adopt best practices such as strong data collection, reduced traffic fatalities and consideration of housing and the environment.

Throughout a project’s lifespan, states and regions would have to measure their current performance at meeting infrastructure needs and then let citizens know how new investment would impact future performance under a number of scenarios. Constituents would actually be able to see what they are getting for their tax dollars.

While critical of the proposal’s lack of specificity on revenue, Ken Orski of Innovation Briefs noted:

Many of its programmatic provisions – for example, those dealing with accelerated project delivery, tolling, highway and motor vehicle safety, “state of good repair” policy, pursuit of VMT fees, performance management and freight policy — are worthy of consideration and will likely find their way into the final bill.

The administration’s livability program contains unprecedented investment in transit, biking and walking. However, the decision to consolidate existing programs under the livability banner has the potential to jeopardize resources for popular initiatives like Safe Routes to School and Transportation Enhancements. It is unfortunate that livability —which folks outside of Washington seem to be perfectly comfortable with — has become subject to partisan fissures. The administration will need to tread carefully on these provisions to avoid losing ground.

While no one expects the administration proposal to emerge from the Congressional milieu untouched, it is sure to inform the relevant committees in the House and Senate as they continue drafting. A revised bill with the full and official backing of President Obama would both expedite this process and increase the prospects for meaningful and long overdue reforms.

James Corless, director of Transportation for America, issued this statement in response:

The decision to halt progress on modernizing our world-lagging rail network is emblematic of an overall failure of congressional leadership and vision. Once again, Congress finds itself lurching from appropriations bill to appropriations bill, creating and killing programs and keeping outdated programs on life support, while China and Europe surge forward. The resulting chaos is undermining our ability even to repair and maintain our existing infrastructure, much less build a a 21st century transportation system that will allow us to compete in an increasingly global economy.

The one bright spot is that Congress preserved – though at a slightly lower level – the merit-based TIGER and sustainable communities programs, which promote competition and fund innovative, multi-disciplinary solutions to our transportation challenges. When Congress takes up the next transportation authorization, which is increasingly urgent, it must build on this sort of approach, while resurrecting a vision that can move us ahead of our international competitors.

The budget deal zeroes out high-speed rail funding from $2.5 billion enacted in fiscal year 2010. The one week extension to keep the government running through Friday had cut high-speed rail funds back to $1 billion for fiscal year 2011. Those funds had not been committed to any states because Congress never finalized a budget for fiscal year 2011. In addition to the $1 billion, the budget rescinds $400 million from fiscal year 2010 that had been returned by Florida Governor Rick Scott earlier this year.

Other cuts include:

• The New Starts program, a key source of funding for transit projects, is reduced to $1.6 billion.
• The TIGER program is reduced to $528 million from $600 million, a loss of $72 million.
• The Partnership for Sustainable Communities is reduced from $150 million in FY10 to $100 million.
• $3.1 billion in highway contract authority that has not been obligated to specific projects is also cut.

The total cuts to the New Starts program depends on the comparison. The $1.6 billion figure is $400 million less than fiscal year 2010 levels, but only about $220 million less than what the President requested for this year. Of the savings, $200 million became unobligated after New Jersey Governor Chris Christie chose to cancel his state’s planned ARC tunnel project.  Seven projects are expected to be impacted by the New Starts cuts.

The final figure for New Starts is only slightly more than what the House passed in HR. 1 several weeks ago. HR1 would have also eliminated funding for high-speed rail and TIGER grants.

With the Federal Government slated to close at midnight, the House and Senate passed a final one week stop-gap measure to allow the details of the agreement to be ironed out. The continuing resolution itself contains $2 billion in cuts that largely hit the U.S. Department of Transportation and Department of Housing and Urban Development.

By next week, Congress is expected to finalize its fiscal year 2011 budget — which runs through September — at the agreed-upon funding levels. President Obama made brief remarks on the budget compromise at the White House shortly after 11pm last night.

The cuts to transportation and housing passed last night were deemed largely non-controversial because they matched closely with the funding levels requested in President Obama’s fiscal year 2012 budget.

The High Speed and Intercity Passenger Rail program will receive $1 billion, a reduction of $1.5 billion from the previous year, and the New Starts program — a key revenue source for transit projects throughout the country — loses $280 million, though the resulting figure is reportedly sufficient to fund projects that have already received grants from USDOT. Other cuts include:

• $6.3 million from the Transportation Planning, Research, and Development account
• $2.5 million from the Federal Railroad Administration’s Research and Development; and
• The Transit Research and University Research Centers Program budget is reduced to $64.2 million.

Details on the remainder of the fiscal year cuts and how they will affect transportation are not yet available, although Politico has early information on a few items:

One of the toughest fights, casting the White House as the budget cutter against reluctant Republicans, was in highway and transportation spending. But here the administration succeeded in cutting about $630 million in so-called orphan earmarks and $2.5 billion in unexpended contract authority.

We expect to hear more about the final package soon.

UPDATE: A White House blog post confirms that the fiscal year 2011 cuts include $630 million in earmarked transportation projects and $2.5 billion in funding that was slated for transportation projects.

Photo courtesy of the Washington Post.

WASHINGTON, DC, February 14, 2011 — President Obama today unveiled a fiscal 2012 budget proposal that calls for investing $128 billion in transportation infrastructure as a first installment on a long-awaited six-year investment plan totaling $556 billion. James Corless, director of Transportation for America, issued this statement in response:

“The President’s proposed budget delivers on his recent promises to ensure we have the 21^st century infrastructure necessary to support a revitalized American economy. While we believe the President is right to pursue a front-loaded investment in this budget that will boost employment in everything from construction to manufacturing, we are most excited by the bold proposals to ensure that the money is spent wisely and accountably.

“The Administration’s visionary reforms recognize where we are at this moment in history: Having built the world’s best highway and bridge network, we have to focus on preserving those aging assets while we build the missing pieces of a modern system that allows people and goods to get where they’re going cheaply, conveniently and safely. The Administration is right then, to propose a “fix it first” policy that will ensure that transportation agencies stop siphoning off money intended to rehabilitate bridges and highways. Equally smart are proposals to reward innovation through competitive grants that emphasize greater efficiency, broader and more affordable options and reduced dependency on foreign oil.

“These and other proposed reforms are precisely in line with recent polls, including one released today by the Rockefeller Foundation, showing that the American people believe strongly that providing a modern, safe infrastructure is a primary role of our government, and that they consider it to be – more than any other issue — above partisan divisions. The Administration proposals also deliver on voters’ desire for greater accountability for maintaining what we’ve already built, and for giving local communities greater flexibility and more say in how they solve their transportation issues and build for the future.

“At the same time, the poll underscores the degree to which current House proposals – which would eliminate support for communities that want better public transportation and safer streets — are at odds with the desires of a majority of Americans. The task now is for the President and Congress to engage in the bipartisan problem-solving Americans expect in order to find ways to pay for the jobs-sustaining infrastructure they deserve.”

The $556 billion, six-year proposal for transportation reauthorization included in the budget is an ambitious standout in a largely sober blueprint. However, persistent unemployment — particularly in the construction industry — makes the case for forgoing infrastructure cuts in favor of investment. When more Americans are working, paying taxes and putting their dollars back into their communities, the deficit goes down too.

Yonah Freemark from the Transport Politic pointed out that the President’s budget continues the expansion of transportation options.

Though the Administration would increase funding for roads construction from $41 billion in the previous budget to $70 billion, that increase is dwarfed in percentage by proposed spending on transit, which would more than double from $8 billion annually currently to $22 billion. Over six years, spending on capital improvements for public transportation would add up to $119 billion.

Tanya Snyder at Streetsblog Capitol Hill also offered some initial reactions.

As promised, the budget also includes the $53 billion for high-speed rail over six years previewed by Vice President Biden in a speech last week.

True to the overall theme of cuts coupled with smarter investment, the plan consolidates 55 programs into just five and invests $30 billion in a National Infrastructure Bank to provide loans and grants to projects of regional and national significance that promote economic growth. The plan contains no earmarks and cancels a number of them still on the books.

The administration is also highlighting a new $32 billion competitive grant program modeled after the successful Race to the Top program in the U.S. Department of Education. This new approach would create incentives for states and regions to pursue their own innovations that reduce congestion, improve quality of life, make it easier for residents to get to work and recreation and enhance economic prosperity. Details about that program should be forthcoming at the U.S. DOT briefing about the budget this afternoon.

In addition, a “Fix-it-first” policy for highways and transit grants would make repair and maintenance of existing infrastructure a higher priority, a reform that would save lives and save money.

The plan does not specify a revenue source for the increases but “commits to work with Congress to ensure that the funding increases for surface transportation do not increase the deficit.”

The U.S. Department of Transportation is hosting a briefing at 2pm at which point many of these details will be further illuminated. T4 America will be releasing a formal statement early this afternoon.

Photo: AFP/Getty Images

Writing the same day Vice President Biden and Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood were in Philadelphia promoting a $53 billion, 6-year passenger rail package, Geithner argued that investing in our nation’s roads, bridges, rail and transit systems creates “both immediate and long-term economic benefits.”

Treasury Department analysis reveals an unemployment rate among American workers building infrastructure at 15 percent, significantly higher than the national average. Investing in infrastructure would create jobs in construction, manufacturing and retail trade, all sectors hard hit by the economic downturn, and nine out of ten jobs created would pay middle-class wages.

Geithner emphasized the administration’s commitment to spending federal dollars in a targeted and fiscally responsible way, writing: “our strategy is designed to make crucial investments in infrastructure while bringing our deficits down to sustainable levels.”

Simply increasing spending levels is unacceptable, Geither wrote, adding “we must also reform the ways in which we invest.” He continued:

Not all infrastructure investments are good investments, and too often we have seen transportation projects exemplify the worst of Washington – the bridges to nowhere that rightly make American taxpayers cringe. The President’s Budget recognizes this and will make some difficult choices, proposing significant spending cuts, including to some programs we would preserve in better times.

President Obama’s plan includes a National Infrastructure Bank, which would “select projects on the basis of rigorous analysis,” Geithner explained. The Bank would evaluate and fund projects that generate the best return on investment, leverage private capital to do it and promote increased transportation options along the way. House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee chairman John Mica, a key player in Congress, has cited securing private capital for projects as a key priority for federal transportation spending.

Infrastructure investment benefits all Americans, even in ways we do not always think about. Upgrades and additions to the New York City subway system allow millions to “get to work faster, increasing their productivity and quality of life by decreasing the amount of time lost to commuting,” Geithner notes. But it also means that “the far-away Kawasaki plant in Lincoln, Nebraska that manufactures the subway cars will increase production, putting Nebraskans to work.”

You can read Secretary Geithner’s entire post here.

Photo: Washington Post

Biden, who was joined by Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and other officials, is a fitting messenger for rail’s benefits. Dubbed “Amtrak Joe,” he was a regular commuter on the Acela line during his 36 years as a U.S. Senator from Delaware. While campaigning in 2008, he told the New York Times, “If we get elected, it will be the most train-friendly administration ever.”

The Vice President announced a six-year, $53 billion investment in national high-speed and intercity passenger rail during remarks at Philadelphia’s historic 30th Street Station. Passengers traveling on Amtrak’s Keystone Corridor from Pittsburgh and Harrisburg use the station to connect to the popular and speedy Acela line, which runs through New York City, Boston and Washington, DC.

While the Obama administration has made clear that responsible deficit reduction is a priority, Biden emphasized there are some areas where it would be irresponsible to scale back.

“As President Obama said in his State of the Union, there are key places where we cannot afford to sacrifice as a nation – one of which is infrastructure,” the Vice President said, adding: “If you shut down Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor, you’d have to add seven new lanes to I-95 to accommodate the traffic.”

The Vice President singled out Meridian, Mississippi mayor and T4 America co-chair John Robert Smith, who served his hometown for four terms. Biden hailed Mayor Smith for using passenger rail to revitalize the economy, bring jobs to the region and improve quality of life. Meridian’s restored Union Station serves 300,000 passengers, hosts over 250 events every year and has leveraged millions in downtown investment.

The need for increased travel options to accommodate expected population growth was also a theme in the Vice President’s address, along with the fact that simply widening highways and building new ones will not suffice.

“In the next 40 years, the United States is expected to increase in population by 100 million people,” he said. “Seventy percent of all people in America now live within 50 miles of the Atlantic Ocean or the Pacific Ocean. You know how congested we are now. What happens with 100 million more?

“When you talk about the investments we’re making in rail, they pale in comparison to investment you’d have to make in runways or highways,” he added. “And that’s before you factor in the environmental benefit of taking cars off the road.”

With this long-term commitment, cities and states now have the certainty to pursue longer-term plans for rail, and businesses can move forward putting more Americans to work making this vision possible. The administration has also made strides on streamlining existing programs in USDOT. Now, for the first time, all high-speed and passenger rail programs are consolidated into just two new accounts.

As Streetsblog already noted, the politics of transportation spending remain muddled, but today’s announcement was a key step toward laying the foundation for a 21st century system.

Photo: CNN

“The third step in winning the future is rebuilding America,” the President said, after discussing his vision for innovation and education. Other nations have outpaced our investment in roads and railways, and our own engineers have graded our infrastructure a “D,” he noted.

President Obama rightly emphasized the need for a 21st century transportation system on top of fixing what we built in the 20th. He also pointed out that we create more jobs and greater opportunity when we embrace an array of transportation options. The transcontinental railroad, rural electrification and the Interstate Highway System did not just put Americans to work in construction, he said. Jobs also came from “businesses that opened near a town’s new train station or the new off-ramp.”

“We were thrilled to hear the President come right out and say that investment in transportation and other infrastructure is central to rebuilding and growing our economy,” said Transportation for America Director James Corless. “An upfront investment in the most needed, clean transportation projects is a great opportunity to create near-term jobs and lay the groundwork for the future economy.”

The President also reiterated his strong support for high-speed rail, with the goal of giving 80 percent of Americans access to the system within 25 years. “This could allow you to go places in half the time it takes to travel by car,” he said.

“For some trips, it will be faster than flying –- without the pat-down,” he added, to laughter.

Although he did not identify the program by name, President Obama endorsed the principles behind an infrastructure bank, saying we ought to “pick projects based (on) what’s best for the economy, not politicians.” And he vowed to harness private capital to help pay for new projects, a goal shared by House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John Mica, a Florida Republican.

A number of groups, including business and labor, hailed the President’s focus on investing in the future. U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Tom Donohue echoed Obama’s call for “a world class infrastructure” and called for “common ground to ensure America’s greatness into the 21st century.” ALF-CIO’s Richard Trumka said, “We strongly support the President’s vision on infrastructure to create good jobs and succeed in a global economy, and working people are ready to work with him and hold him to his promises.”

AASHTO, the trade group representing state departments of transportation, was “encouraged that President Obama supports investing in America’s transportation infrastructure – recognizing the role it plays in creating jobs, growing the national economy and balancing the federal deficit,” according to Executive Director John Horsley, who added that he looks forward to working with the Administration and Congress on a reauthorization bill.

The Equity Caucus at Transportation for America said that “smarter transportation investments can unleash the under-realized economic power of communities across America.”

T4 America echoes these sentiments, and we are especially pleased with the President’s dual commitment to job creation today and economic prosperity tomorrow.

“The President’s vision for infrastructure is not just about near-term construction jobs,” Corless said. “It is, as he said, about growing new businesses, livable neighborhoods and dynamic regions that can attract a young and mobile workforce and compete internationally.

“It’s about jobs associated with new transportation technologies and manufacturing modern transit vehicles, everything from real time information systems to make our highways and transit corridors smarter, to the new rail cars being built today by United Streetcar in Oregon that can breathe new life into our cities and suburbs,” he added.

You can read T4 America’s entire statement here. You can learn more about the Equity Caucus at Transportation for America and read their entire statement here.

Photo: AP

“A national high-speed rail system is not only an opportunity to redefine how we travel and how our regional economies grow – it represents the type of innovation and progress that can guarantee another century of growth and prosperity in America. It gives people a choice in how they travel, something polls have shown Americans want. The diversity of grant recipients shows that communities both large and small will benefit from investments in high-speed and inter-city passenger rail. For example, the States of Iowa and Illinois received $230 million in grants for a new passenger rail connection between Iowa City and Chicago, which will help to revitalize a number of smaller cities along the route.

“This $2.4 billion investment, on top of the $8 billion awarded from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, is a worthy start, but it is crucial that the Obama administration work with Congress on a comprehensive and transformational reauthorization of America’s surface transportation law. A new bill that increases travel options, holds agencies accountable for how they spend our transportation dollars and repairs and maintains our nation’s infrastructure will help rebuild our economy and ensure more communities can pursue innovative transportation solutions in the decades ahead. A strong and safe network of rail, roads, bridges and public transportation systems in this country is an area ripe for common ground. We must move forward together, regardless of what happens next Tuesday.”

For more information, see Secretary Ray LaHood write-up at USDOT’s Fastlane Blog or a complete list of projects here.