Policy recommendations issued for future US transportation needs and projects
The Energy Security Leadership Council (ESLC), a part of the group called Securing America's Future Energy (SAFE), today released “Transportation Policies for America's Future,” a comprehensive suite of policy recommendations designed to transform the US’ transportation policy and protect the US’ economic and national security by contributing to reduced oil consumption. The policies would result in a more market-oriented model that would offer more consumer choices, and provide Americans a more efficient, more effective network of roads and rails.
"Oil dependence is a national security issue, and it deserves to be treated as such," said ESLC Co-Chairman Frederick Smith (the chairman of FedEx). "The lynchpin of our dependence is our cars and trucks, which use the majority of our oil and upon which we depend for the mobility that powers our modern economy. We have made significant improvements in the areas of new vehicle technologies and alternative fuels, and must continue that effort. But we have for too long neglected the connection between our oil consumption and the network of roads and rails themselves that make up our transportation system. Today, we offer a new vision, for a more market-friendly, more transparent, less congested, and less oil-intensive transportation system."
The nation's current federal surface transportation legislation—which funds more than $50 billion a year in highway and transit programs—expired in September 2009; the latest in a series of short-term extensions is set to expire on March 4. Both the Senate and House are moving forward with hearings on a new, long-term transportation bill.
The recommendations outlined in the report are designed to introduce a more market-oriented transportation model that uses oil consumption as a key metric by which decisions are made and evaluated. According to long-term modeling, major policies recommended in the paper could save as much as 7-billion cumulative barrels of oil by the year 2035. Among the key recommendations:
• Establish the reduction of oil consumption as a principal metric at the US Department of Transportation
• Create a new federal formula program focused on improving system performance in urban areas using pricing strategies and single-occupancy vehicle alternatives
• Create a competitive program that makes funds available for congestion-mitigation proposals that seek to deploy dynamic tolling, performance-based technological improvements, transit solutions, and travel demand management (TDM) initiatives
• Establish a program to fund nationally-significant projects that improve the efficiency of freight and goods movement, and have a substantial impact on interstate commerce
• Remove federal legal restrictions on tolling road capacity that could bring about congestion relief
• Actively promote the long-term deployment of a comprehensive, privacy-protective vehicle miles travelled (VMT) fee
• Pilot approaches to pre-development regulations for projects expected to achieve sustainable oil savings.
Comments