A Fiscal Conservative, Congressional Transportation Committee Chair Mica Sees Transit as Efficient Investment

Could the tides be turning on high speed rail?

Our partner, Transportation for America, reports that Florida Republican John Mica could be a key ally on high-speed rail.

T4America turned up this impressive 2009 statement from Mica:

“If you’re on the Transportation Committee long enough, even if you’re a fiscal conservative, which I consider myself to be, you quickly see the benefits of transportation investment. Simply, I became a mass transit fan because it’s so much more cost effective than building a highway. Also, it’s good for energy, it’s good for the environment – and that’s why I like it.”

Read the full T4America article here:  Florida Republican John Mica could be a key ally on high-speed rail.

Because of its impact on climate change, greenhouse gas pollution, energy security, sprawl, public health and the nascent green jobs sector, promoting sustainable transportation options is one of CTLCV’s current focus areas.

New Haven – Hartford – Springfield rail line gets regional support. “A win-win-win for the economy, the environment, and jobs”

By Kirsten Griebel

January 28, 2011, 10:00 AM, Union Station, Hartford, CT

Four members of CT’s congressional delegation, Congressman Larson, Courtney, Murphy and Congresswoman DeLauro, CT Governor Malloy, and Senator Blumenthal held a joint meeting with PA Congressman Bill Shuster, and MA Congressman John Olver and DOT reps from MA and VT, to champion the development of the Northeast Rail Corridor and specifically the New Haven – Hartford – Springfield rail line.  This rail line presents a unique opportunity for CT, one that unites a number of different stakeholders, political, business and environmental, in support of a major transportation project, that will benefit the environment and the economy while simultaneously create jobs.

Congressman Shuster, Chair, Sub-Committee on Rail, US House of Representatives Transportation Committee, said the investment in rail is critical to the nation and in particular to the NE corridor. The NE has the population and the congestion, both on roads and in air.  70% of delayed flights nationally originate in the NE airports causing a negative ripple effect on the rest of the nation. Shuster noted that President Obama said in his recent State of the Union address that his goal is to get rail to 80% of the nation. Today, Shuster said we could get rail to 20% of the country by developing the NE corridor rail line. He also said that FLA Congressman John Mica, Chair of the Transportation Committee is “fully committed” to the NE corridor.  And he said President Obama indicated he wants “robust rail” included in the Highway Re-Authorization Bill which will be coming in late spring.

Governor Malloy said his top two goals were to reduce energy rates in CT and to improve the ability to move people and freight efficiently through the state.  He said “to compete with emerging economies” transportation is the “most strategic investment we can make” and he pledged to work hard to secure federal monies to make the New Haven- Hartford-Springfield rail line a reality. He also stressed the importance of connecting CT to NY, MA and VT saying he will work with the Governors of those states on regional transportation  initiatives.

Governor Malloy stated clearly that CT needs to stop borrowing to pay for operating expenses but that it is appropriate to borrow for infrastructure such as transportation projects and to leverage federal investments.  He will be more specific about how to pay for these investments in his upcoming “economic blueprint” - his budget proposal on Feb. 16.

Congresswoman DeLauro said high speed rail is desperately needed in the NE corridor and the NH-H-S line is the “top priority” of the CT delegation.  She stressed that high speed rail is an economic driver and is one of the best job creators.  Rail projects as a job creator was consistently echoed by all speakers. 

Congressman Courtney spoke of the challenges of CT’s 100 y.o. draw bridges as an impediment to high speed rail.  CT received ARRA  federal monies to repair the Niantic River draw bridge which will not only improve rail service but also create construction jobs.

Congressman Murphy focused on the opportunity for transit oriented development, citing the Meriden rail station and surrounding area as a good example of TOD just waiting to happen once the rail line is complete.  He went on to say that the rail branch lines to Danbury and Waterbury, have been underfunded and underutilized as the state has had to direct rail funding to the main rail lines.  With federal funding of the main rail lines, CT may be in a position to re-direct funds to develop the branch lines and help move people out of cars and on to rail.

Speaker of the House, Chris Donovan, said that the NH-H-S rail line is “an opportunity to preserve the rural areas in CT while revitalizing our urban areas”.

Senator Blumenthal summed it up saying rail projects are a win-win for the economy, the environment and job creation and that he will fight for federal transportation funding for CT.

For reports and agenda presented at today’s joint meeting go to:

• http://conservationeducation.org/Documents/Vision_for_the_New_England_High_Speed_Intercity_Rail_Network.pdf
• http://conservationeducation.org/Documents/NHHS_Rail_2011-01-28.pdf 
• http://conservationeducation.org/Documents/Roundtable_Agenda_2011-01-28.pdf

Stalled: Fed Funding for Transit & Highway Projects

The Highway Trust Fund, which provides about $41 billion annually to the states for transit and highway projects each year, has been without a funding plan for more than 15 months, and now House Republicans want to appropriate funding for it on an annual basis.

Through legislation, Congress has historically allocated money to the fund for a period of years, instead of through an annual appropriations process, because transportation projects are long term endeavors that need stable, predictable funding.

Senator Chris Dodd championed a National Infrastructure Bank concept that would have created a pool of public and private funds for critical, high priority transportation projects.  But with Dodd out of office, new, persuasive champions need to be recruited for that initiative to go anywhere. Massachusetts Senator John Kerry seems to be stepping up to the plate, with his call for the US to keep pace with the rest of the world or get left behind. 

Meanwhile, until we get our House in order, the public’s call to create jobs, shore up our infrastructure and build transit systems that get us out of our cars goes ignored.

Read more at:

• Governing 
• Tri-State Transportation Campaign
• CT Mirror

It’s Time to Speak Up for Clean Transportation

Transportation for America reports that Majority Leader Harry Reid is making it his priority to pull together climate legislation this week.  He will be meeting with a group of committee chairs, and then Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee will be marking up an assortment of energy bills at the end of the week. 

Initial reports suggest the final package will scaled back, and there is a chance the clean transportation provisions from the Kerry Lieberman bill won't make the cut. 

Please call your Senators today and tell them that reducing emissions from transportation is crucial.  Ask them to call Senator Reid in support of clean transportation.  Click here for links to Connecticut’s Congressional Delegation on www.vote-smart.org.   

Not from Connecticut?  Click here and choose your state:  http://www.vote-smart.org/official_congress.php.

More Transit Cuts Coming, Unless Public Transportation Preservation Act Intervenes

– By Michael Wysolmerski, Summer Intern from Yale, 
michael.wysolmerski@ctlcv.org

Just last week, the New York Daily News reported that the MTA has cut the Metro-North 1:34 p.m. express from Grand Central to New Haven, the 2:33 express from New Haven, and the 1:15 a.m. train from Grand Central to Stamford—even though Connecticut, according to a Hartford Courant article, will pay $200,000 to avoid further Metro-North cuts in the state.

The federal Public Transportation Preservation Act (S 3412/HR 5418) could come to the rescue. The bill, which was introduced by Senators Chuck Schumer, Kirsten Gillibrand, Frank Lautenberg, Robert Menendez, and Chris Dodd, would provide $2 billion in federal aid to transit agencies across the country that are cutting service and raising fares.

The Public Transportation Preservation Act, according to a press release on Senator Schumer’s (D-NY) website, would provide approximately $345 million for the NYC-NJ-CT urbanized area, which includes southwestern Connecticut, and prevent cuts and higher prices on the Metro North Railroad. More specifically for Connecticut, according to calculations done by Michelle Ernst, TSTC’s staff-analyst, the Connecticut Department of Transportation stands to receive approximately $36 million, while other Connecticut transportation agencies would receive around $2 million, bringing the total funding to the state to around $37 or $38 million.

According to TSTC, the money from the bill could only be put towards transit operations. No capital construction projects could receive funding.

Not only would the bill help preserve public transportation systems, but it would create approximately 72,000 high quality green jobs, according to figures from the American Public Transportation Association.

The bill is rapidly gaining momentum in the Senate, as it now has 11 co-sponsors, yet there are currently only two co-sponsors in the House. According to the TSTC, New York advocates of the bill are urging their representatives to co-sponsor the bill in the House.

Transportation for America urges voters to “keep flooding our senators with letters and calls,” and released an action alert that calls for senators to cosponsor the bill.

Click here to tell your senators to support emergency transit funding and keep America's transit systems running.

The Future of Cars

If you’re interested in the connection between transportation, energy, and the environment, you’ll like the recent Bob Edwards Weekend interview with Paul Ingrassia, author of "Crash Course: The American Automobile Industry's Road from Glory to Disaster."

Ingrassia, who spent 31 years with the Wall Street Journal, talks about the evolution of the auto industry, the bailout packages, and the future of electric and hybrid vehicles.

Ingrassia comments that

“A lot of what’s going to happen with alternative car technologies depends on American federal policy.

You tell me what gas prices are going to be, and I’ll tell you what kind of cars Americans are going to buy.”

Confirming what a lot of us already suspected, Ingrassia says, “Americans have only switched to smaller, more efficient cars, when confronted with gas prices of $3.50 or $4 a gallon or above.  If gas prices drop down to $2 a gallon in the next couple years, I wouldn’t bet on electric cars.”  You can listen to the full  Bob Edwards Weekend interview with Ingrassia at http://podcast.com/episode/49804010/32910/?cp=1125 (audio only).  You’ll learn about the likes of “inverse layoffs,” GM’s restroom segregation system and much, much more!

Or if you prefer video, watch Jon Stewart’s interview with Ingrassia here.   (Skip ahead to about 13:15 for the interview.)

And speaking of what’s going to happen with American transportation policy, try to make tomorrow’s panel discussion at on “Transportation in Connecticut: Strengthening the Federal Investement in Your Ride."  1:30 at Union Station in Hartford.  For further information contact Gloria Mills at gmills.cact@snet.net. 

A Step Forward for Transit Funding

Taking a major step forward in federal transportation policy, US Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood announced this week that the federal government would start taking factors like energy efficiency, economic development and reduced emissions into account when deciding which state and local transportation projects get federal funding.

This policy shift will make it easier for cities and states to get federal money for public transit projects, such as the streetcar and light-rail systems for which demand has grown in recent years.

Addressing thousands of engineers, academics and transportation officials at an annual transportation research conference this week, LaHood, remarked that

“Our old ways of doing business didn’t value environmental, community and economic benefits enough,”

according to a New York Times story.LaHood is a Republican and former Illinois congressman known for his support for transit and liveable cities and an ability to work effectively across party lines.

Previously, the overriding factors in awarding federal funding for transit projects were cost and time-in-transit savings. Those factors are still part of the decision-making process for funding through “New Starts,” the federal government's major transit grant program that distributes funds for transit projects, but no longer are they more important than things like congestion relief, energy efficiency, or emissions reductions.

Not only have the federal funding criteria for transit projects been in need of reform, but so is the timeframe for awarding federal money for transit projects. It takes an average of 10 years for transit projects to move through planning and design phases to receive a grant through the New Starts program. LaHood wants to shorten that timeframe significantly, as does Transportation & Infrastructure congressional committee chair Congressman James Oberstar (D-MN), who backs the proposed Surface Transportation Authorization Act now before Congress.

Further, according to Transportation for America, we as a country are not investing as we need to in a transportation system that will make us competitive in the global economy. Funding available for transit projects is nowhere near the demand. Only a small percentage of transit project applicants get any federal funding, and then, the federal government tends to match only about 50% of the local funding provided for the project. In contrast, the federal government matches about 80% of the local funding put up for highway projects, perpetuating an American car-based culture that is making us fat, sick and a big part of the world’s greenhouse gas problems.

If it is enacted, the proposed Surface Transportation Authorization Act could make some headway on reducing the disparity between transit and highway funding. In the proposed bill, transit would get about a 22% allotment of the $450 billion bill, inching up from the 18% share that the last major piece of transportation legislation, known as SAFETEA-LU, allotted for transit.

CTLCV supports smart transit and transportation policies for a competitive, sustainable Connecticut.

Sources:

• The Surface Transportation Authorization Act of 2009, "A Blueprint for Investment and Reform": http://transportation.house.gov/
• Transportation for America: http://t4america.org/blog/2010/01/13/feds-announce-change-to-consider-livability-in-funding-transit-projects/
• New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/14/us/14streetcar.html
• Streetsblog Capitol Hill: http://dc.streetsblog.org/2010/01/13/big-transit-news-bush-era-rule-tossed-enviro-benefits-on-the-table/ and http://dc.streetsblog.org/2009/06/18/oberstars-new-transportation-bill-get-the-highlights/

Fed Transportation Unlikely to Pass Soon

Every six years, Congress allocates hundreds of billions of dollars for transportation and infrastructure projects that shape our communities for generations. (Case in point: the dissection of Hartford and the riverfront by I-84 and I-91.)

Our current $286 billion national transportation program expires in 2009.

As the Wall Street Journal reports, the next transportation authorization bill would distribute $450 billion in funds to states over six years to upgrade roads, bridges and transit systems, including $70 billion each year for highway and mass transit systems. Nearly a third (28%) of our greenhouse gas emissions comes from the transportation sector.

But the US House of Representatives is unlikely to agree this summer about how to pay for that major transportation investment, disappointing state governments, transit agencies, construction companies, and advocates like CTLCV.

As Roll Call reported on July 27:

"If House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman James Oberstar (D-Minn.) has his way, the House this week will approve a $3 billion infusion for the ailing Highway Trust Fund before leaving town Friday. Doing so would head off a projected shortfall in the account that in mid-August would halt federal payments for highway projects — funds desperately needed by cash-starved states. Moreover, the gambit buys time for Oberstar to press his six-year transportation overhaul, also known as the highway bill, by throwing off a plan advancing in the Senate that would extend the current transportation law for 18 months beyond its Sept. 30 expiration."

CTLCV has signed on as a partner with Transportation for America to seize the opportunity to overhaul our transportation systems in a way that simultaneously reduces greenhouse gas emissions and our dependence on foreign oil. Check out Transportation for America's website for more information, and stay tuned.