DOT readies funds, roadability regulations
The U.S. Department of Transportation is prepared to meet the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act's requirement that half the money for transportation projects be committed to approved projects within 120 days, Secretary Ray LaHood said Tuesday.
'Our goal is to get that money out the door to the governors and mayors as quickly as we can to put people to work this spring, summer and fall,' LaHood told an open-door meeting of the American Trucking Associations' board of directors on Capitol Hill.
The spending program enacted last week, designed to save or create 3.5 million jobs, includes $28 billion for highway infrastructure, $12 billion for transit, $8 billion for high-speed rail and $3 billion for airport improvements.
LaHood said President Obama wants development of a nationwide high-speed rail system to be part of his legacy 'so that as we are known as the model for the interstate system at some point we will also be known as the model for high speed rail' around the world. New high-speed rail lines could benefit cargo interests by separating passenger and freight traffic that often share tracks.
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All financing options should be on the table as Congress prepares to reauthorize the multiyear surface transportation spending blueprint that expires Sept. 30, LaHood said, without referring to a vehicle-mile-traveled tax as a potential solution as he did in an interview last Friday. The White House quickly knocked down the idea after the interview was published. LaHood declined to discuss the distance-based tax formula when approached by reporters.
'The Highway Trust Fund, frankly, is a 20th century mechanism for funding roads' and needs to be revamped to meet the maintenance and capacity needs of the nation, LaHood said.
LaHood is scheduled to meet with Rep. James Oberstar, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, on Wednesday to discuss the surface transportation spending law.
The secretary also announced that the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration's rule governing the safe operation of intermodal chassis would go into effect June 17.
The final 'roadability' rule was issued in December, but had been in limbo while the White House conducted a review of pending regulations from the Bush administration that had yet to be implemented. Under the rule, equipment providers such as railroads and ocean carriers, will have to ensure equipment meets standards for road worthiness before being provided to a driver and is properly maintained. ' Eric Kulisch