Tell your Representative to support a national vision for transportation
June 10, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
| “… It’s important to develop a long-term transportation strategy when it comes to our economy and environment. We must rebuild our aging infrastructure in a smart way that addresses our economic and energy challenges.” |
| — Rep. Carnahan |
UPDATED: Co-sponsors added in the comments. Thanks for your emails and calls!
In the revolutionary transportation bill of 1991, Congress officially declared that Eisenhower’s Interstate Highway System had been completed, signaling an end to one of the greatest national investments in history. Unfortunately, we didn’t have a new national vision to take it’s place, and our transportation system has been operating as a ship without a rudder since.
We’re in desperate need of an overarching strategy that determines when, how, and where transportation dollars are spent. As of now, we have no firm plan. No vision. No goal for what the billions in taxpayer dollars should accomplish. That can all change with the National Transportation Objectives Act of 2009 introduced last week by three members of the U.S. House of Representatives, Russ Carnahan (D-MO), Rush Holt (D-NJ), and Jay Inslee (D-WA).
These three Representatives made a great step towards a 21st Century transportation system by introducing this bill, but this legislation needs us to stand behind it to have a real impact. Let’s send a message to Congress loud and clear that this is the kind of vision the American people support.
Like its companion bill introduced to the Senate in May, this bill sets a bold new vision for federal transportation policy and is in line with Transportation for America’s goals for reform: building a cleaner, smarter, safer system that provides more travel choices for all Americans.
The House bill establishes six objectives and 10 measurable targets. If they sound familiar at all, that’s because they’re exactly the same as what we have in our Blueprint. The performance targets, which all have of a goal of being achieved in 20 years, include:
- Reduce vehicles miles traveled by 16 percent.
- Triple walking, biking, and public transit use.
- Reduce transportation-generated carbon dioxide levels by 40 percent.
- Reduce delays by 10 percent.
- Increase the proportion of freight transportation provided by railroad and intermodal services by 20 percent.
- Achieve zero percent population exposure to at-risk levels of air pollution.
- Improve public safety and lower congestion cost by reducing traffic crashes by 50 percent.
- Increase share of major highways, regional transit fleets and facilities, and bicycling/pedestrian infrastructure in good state of repair condition by 20 percent.
- Reduce average household combined housing plus transportation costs by 25 percent, using 2000 as a base year.
- Increase by 50 percent the number of essential destinations accessible within 30 minutes by public transportation or 15 minutes by walking, for low-income, senior, and disabled populations.
We are still trying to garner support for the Senate bill as well, so send a message to your Senator about the companion bill if you haven’t already.
Tell your Senator to sponsor the Transportation Policy and Planning Act of 2009 (S.1036)
May 29, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
Would you believe that the United States of America has no overarching strategy that determines when, how, or where transportation dollars are spent? No plan. No vision. No goal. Senators Lautenberg and Rockefeller are trying to change that.
A few weeks ago, they introduced a bill that sets a bold new vision for federal transportation policy that’s in line with our goals for reform: building a cleaner, smarter, safer system that provides more travel choices for all Americans. But their bill — and real reform — needs the support of many more senators to become the law of the land. Ask yours to become cosponsors of the Transportation Policy and Planning Act of 2009 today.
In contrast to the transportation bills passed since 1991, this bold bill lays out clear guidelines for exactly what the next five-year federal transportation spending plan should accomplish, and several of Transportation for America’s proposals from our recently-released Blueprint were echoed clearly in the legislation.
- Reduce delay per capita by 10 percent,
- Reduce national motor vehicle-related fatalities by 50 percent, and
- Reduce national surface transportation-generated carbon dioxide levels by 40 percent, all by the year 2030.
If we’re going to get a truly transformative transportation bill in 2009, getting a large number of Senators to support this smart, principled bill would be a huge step in the right direction. As Sen. Frank Lautenberg told the Washington Post, “a national surface transportation policy for our country is long overdue. We need a transportation policy that reestablishes our leadership throughout the world when it comes to transportation — and meets our country’s transportation demands for generations to come.”
Write your Senator and tell them to cosponsor this important legislation today.
T4 America to testify on Capitol Hill this afternoon
April 28, 2009By Stephen Lee Davis
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| PlatformLaunch3 Originally uploaded by Transportation for America |
| T4 America Campaign Director James Corless at our platform launch back in February. |
Transportation for America will be on Capitol Hill today testifying before the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation about “The Future of National Surface Transportation Policy.” You can stream it live on the Committee’s website.
Campaign director James Corless, along with Anne Canby of the Surface Transportation Policy Partnership and a founding member of T4 America, will be testifying this afternoon at 2:30 p.m. EDT.
We’ll post the full testimony from each speaker later this afternoon following the hearing. James will be discussing how our current transportation policy lacks a unified, coherent purpose — hampering our national prosperity and preventing us from addressing critical national issues like congestion relief, energy security, reducing emissions, and making transportation affordable for all Americans.
Transportation investments are our nation’s best tool to improve our economic competitiveness; reduce energy usage and curb greenhouse gas emissions; provide good paying green jobs; increase economic opportunity; and improve quality of life for all Americans. The upcoming rewrite of our federal transportation law represents a once in a lifetime opportunity to develop a new national transportation vision and leave behind a legacy for our children and grandchildren.
Unfortunately, our nation lacks a cohesive national surface transportation policy, and consequently, cannot adequately address many of our transportation challenges — let alone address other pressing national issues.
Check back later this afternoon for their full testimony if you’d like to read it, or watch it live.
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- Transit grants out the federal door, but what about the cuts?
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March 5, 2010 - Opposition to Senate extension results in looming shutdown of federal transportation programs
February 26, 2010 - T4 jobs proposal would create nearly half a million jobs, according to Economic Policy Institute
February 17, 2010 - Obama’s 2011 budget gives a lift to livability and transportation
February 2, 2010
- Transit grants out the federal door, but what about the cuts?
The United States of Transit Cutbacks
Driving is down and transit ridership is at record highs. Yet transit agencies across the country are considering layoffs, service cuts and fare hikes. Find out more and learn what you can do to help at t4america.org/transitcuts
Transportation: In your eyes
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