Lessons from recent successes: Winning State Funding for Transportation
Growing again after a long economic slump that left a huge backlog of unmet needs, a dozen or more states are moving now to raise revenue for transportation. What can they learn from the other states that acted in the last year or two? Our new report, out today, draws out seven key lessons.
Obama budget cues start of serious negotiations over transportation funding
With the release of his budget proposal yesterday, President Obama at last offered some specifics on his plan to use the repatriation of taxable corporate profits to fund transportation. In doing so, he staked out a starting point for real-world negotiations over a possible six-year transportation bill – the first time such a prospect has seemed remotely realistic in six years.
Statement in response to President Obama’s FY2016 budget for transportation
The Obama Administration Monday released a budget outline that envisions a six-year, $478 billion surface transportation authorization, paid for in part with a 14 percent tax on U.S. companies’ profits that are now parked overseas. It includes spending $94.7 billion in FY 2016 for roads, bridges, transit systems and freight networks, nearly double the current amount. Transportation for America Director James Corless issued this statement in response:
Governors step out in favor of raising transportation revenue
States across the country are facing huge deficits in their own transportation budgets — a problem compounded by the uncertainty over the support they’ve always received from the federal transportation fund, which is now just months away from insolvency. However, over the last month or so, at least nine governors have highlighted plans to raise new state transportation revenues in their State of the State addresses, marking the issue as a top priority.
Mayors’ challenge: Help us meet critical transportation needs
Last week, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx issued a public challenge to mayors to “take significant action to improve safety for bicycle riders and pedestrians of all ages and abilities over the next year.” Mayors, in return, have a challenge of their own to the federal government: Don’t leave us in the lurch when it comes to the funding for those – and many other – transportation needs.
Tell Congress to send real dollars where the real needs are
Applause rang out from both sides of the aisle during the State of the Union, when President Obama called for the ambitious, “bipartisan infrastructure plan” we need for a 21st century, “middle-class economy”.
As a bridge falls in Cincinnati, the future of federal support remains dicey
Is the bridge collapse in Cincinnati a glimpse of our future? You may have heard that on Monday night, an obsolete overpass undergoing demolition “pancaked” onto I-75, killing a worker and nearly crushing a passing tractor-trailer. The bridge didn’t fall from decay, per se, but the circumstances in many ways are more worrisome even than […]
15 issues to watch in ’15, Part II: Places
It’s a challenge to craft a list of only five states, regions and cities that have important or notable things happening this year. Whether states attempting to raise transportation revenue this year, states changing key policies and continuing to innovate how they choose or build transportation projects, or local communities going to voters to raise money for new projects, there’s no shortage of places worth watching this year. Here are five that rose to the top, but tell us what you think we missed, in your area or elsewhere.
SOTU reaction: To build a 21st-century, ‘middle-class economy’, President and Congress must provide stable transportation funding
WASHINGTON, D.C. – In response to President Obama’s call for increased investment in infrastructure Transportation for America Director James Corless issued this statement:
Credit where it’s due: With repair rule, the feds listened to public comment
In developing new standards for ensuring our roads and bridges are kept in good condition, officials at the U.S. DOT did something skeptics would find surprising: They really listened to public comment, and reflected it in the newly released rule.
It’s past time to elevate the national conversation about infrastructure beyond just the price tag. Learn more about T4America's three simple principles for federal transportation investment.
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