Coordinate Existing Resources to Alleviate Traffic Woes

Our own Representative Castle introduced H.R. 6435, the “National Highway Chokepoint Congestion Relief Act.” The Act calls for:

(1) Development of criteria for designating national chokepoint regions
(2) The awarding of grants for capital improvements in such regions, the Federal share of which would be 80%

The Act also calls for establishing “performance measures and quantitative goals” in order to measure the effectiveness and efficiency of congestion-relief projects.

While I applaud the spirit of the legislation, I question its potential effectiveness and feasibility. It also appears to me to duplicate other efforts and could result in funds and projects that work at cross-purposes with each other.

The first issue is, of course, money. The Act is to be funded by the federal transportation trust fund, which is “expected to be broke next year”. While it is reported that savings can be found in the fund through the elimination of wasteful spending and earmarks, I don’t see that happening anytime soon. It is also too early for a CBO report on the Act, which would shed some light on the actual costs expected to be incurred.

Much is already being spent by the federal government on the very issues that H.R. 6435 is addressing. SAFETEA-LU appropriates the following for each fiscal year from 2005 through 2009:

(1) $196.4 million/year for transportation research, development and deployment programs
(2) $27 million/year for the Bureau of Transportation Statistics
(3) $69.7 million/year for university transportation research
(4) $110 million/year for intelligent transportation systems research

The University of South Florida was one such grant recipient, and was one of ten universities that was awarded $1 million a year for years 2006 through 2009. The theme of the research as stated in their strategic plan is:

“….to make public transportation and alternative forms of transportation, including managed lanes, safe, effective, efficient, desirable, and secure. The goals of NCTR are: to minimize traffic congestion, maximize mobility options, promote safety and security, improve the environment, and enhance community sustainability. This will be accomplished by conducting applied and advanced research, energetically disseminating the results, and expanding the workforce of transportation professionals through education and training to address the challenges and opportunities of the future.

NCTR’s theme is completely consistent with the strategic goals of the USDOT. Public Transportation must become a more prominent mode of transportation as our population increases and ages, funding of highway infrastructure becomes more expensive and difficult to secure, congestion reduces the efficiency of the economy, gas becomes scarcer and more expensive, concern for the environment continues to increase, and our reliance on oil puts our national security at severe risk. More attractive public transportation services and managed lanes can provide more choices to the traveling public and business community to complement and supplement the highway construction that will be undertaken.

NCTR will also focus on research that promotes travel choices for all trip purposes and improves transportation system reliability. Research will include enhancements in the use of alternative forms of travel and practices such as managed lanes, telework, flexible work hours, congestion pricing, traveler information, ridesharing, bicycling, and pedestrian modes. In addition, NCTR researchers will conduct research that helps advance the use of alternative fuels and technologies that help protect the environment while enabling traffic to move more safely and smoothly.”

Sound familiar? There are many institutions of higher learning and government agencies that are ostensibly working on the problem. It is the job of the Department of Transportation to coordinate this research and set the strategic tone.

But local regions may actually be working at cross-purposes with any efficiencies that may be gleaned. From theNewspaper, in a recent article titled, “New Virginia Toll Lanes Designed to Create Congestion” (emphasis added):

“In effect, the contract between the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) and Transurban is designed to ensure the area remains sufficiently congested so that motorists will have an incentive to pay to use the toll lanes.

For example, VDOT can make no changes, expansion or improvements to the free lanes on the Beltway until the year 2087 unless the agency first consults Transurban. VDOT agreed that if any such changes were made to the general purpose lanes without Transurban's explicit approval, they would at least be made in such a way as to guarantee the company maintained a high level of profit."

This ill-conceived program creates disincentives towards improving highway efficiency. The details of the agreement with the Australian firm Transurban only came to light when questionable campaign donations were discovered from that company to politicians who had a hand in orchestrating the agreement.

So, on the one hand Castle’s legislation duplicates existing efforts and projects that are already costing the taxpayer billions of dollars. On the other hand, State and regional transportation projects (also funded primarily with Federal dollars), are not sufficiently monitored to ensure that they don’t thwart the very purpose of highway funding. H.R. 6435 just adds another layer of administration and bureaucracy that is not needed.

A more strategic and comprehensive view from the Department of Transportation is needed to address the issues in an efficient and cost-effective manner.