BROOKINGS INSTITUTION
METROPOLITAN POLICY PROGRAM
With the recent passage of a new five-year, $305 billion surface transportation bill—Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act—Congress finally brokered a long-term agreement to address the nation’s infrastructure challenges. While the bill pumps needed spending into a range of highway, rail, and transit projects, albeit through some budgetary gimmicks, its most lasting achievement may center on freight.
Archive for the ‘National’ Category
FAST Act ushers new era for U.S. freight policy
Thursday, January 7th, 2016The Economic Effects of Immediately Opening Federal Lands to Oil, Gas, and Coal Leasing
Wednesday, January 6th, 2016
INSTITUTE FOR ENERGY RESEARCH
While headlines have reported declining oil, gas, and coal prices, those declines do not deter from the fact that U.S. energy resources are valuable to our domestic economic growth. The most recent government estimate of those benefits was a 2012 Congressional Budget Office (CBO) study, produced at the request of the House Budget Committee, which analyzed federal lease revenues that could be expected to arise from a proposal to open federal lands and waters to oil, gas, and coal extraction.
US DOT: The Importance of Ports
Wednesday, January 6th, 2016
Animation from the United States Department of Transportation on the importance of seaports to the American economy. “Without ports, the economy stops,” but many of our nation’s ports are in need of updates.
View this complete post...ACEC Engineering Business Index – 4th Quarter 2015
Tuesday, January 5th, 2016
AMERICAN COUNCIL OF ENGINEERING COMPANIES
A big factor behind the jump in CEO sentiment was the passage of the five-year $305 billion surface transportation program. Twelve-month growth expectations for the Transportation market, which has languished for years due to the Federal Government’s failure to provide long-term funding, leaped from 58.4 to 70.1.
Guest on The Infra Blog: Rod Diridon, Sr., Emeritus Executive Director, Mineta Transportation Institute
Tuesday, December 29th, 2015
Rod Diridon, Sr., served as executive director of the Mineta Transportation Institute from 1995, four years after the Institute’s creation, until 2014 when he moved to Emeritus status. Mr. Diridon has chaired more than 100 international, national, state and local programs, most related to transit and the environment.
“The minimum gas prices around the world are more than double, sometimes triple, the United States…Now the public in America wants a gas tax increase: the polls show it. The polls show that if the gas tax increase will be used for transportation and infrastructure improvements, then the public supports it sometimes as high as 80%…But the U.S. can’t do it because Congress doesn’t have the courage.”
View this complete post...Public Perception of Mileage-Based User Fees
Monday, December 28th, 2015
TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH BOARD
In recent years, the real value of fuel tax revenues has declined significantly as a result of increasing vehicle fuel efficiency, failure to adjust tax rates to keep up with inflation, and fewer miles driven. This decline in the purchasing power of the revenues collected has led to ongoing funding challenges for transportation infrastructure and increased uncertainty about future funding options. The long term sustainability of motor fuel taxes has come into question, in view of increasing fuel efficiency and possible shifts to alternative fuel vehicles. Interest has grown in the potential of replacing the current fuel tax — assessed at the federal level and in many states as a flat fee per gallon — with new road usage charge assessed on all miles traveled. This method is often referred to as a mileage-based user fee (MBUF), road usage charge (RUC), vehicle miles traveled (VMT) fee, or per-mile tax.
The 2015 Holiday Travel Forecast
Friday, December 25th, 2015
AAA
IHS GLOBAL INSIGHT
Travel during the year-end holiday period will top 100 million for the first time, as the 1.4 percent growth will be driven by rising incomes and low prices, boosting consumer spending three percent above year-ago levels.
Why Is America’s Infrastructure Collapsing?
Tuesday, December 22nd, 2015
Once the world leader in infrastructure, the United States has fallen far behind in 16th place. So just how bad are America’s roads?
View this complete post...Our Future with the FAST Act: Ed Rendell, Former PA Governor & Building America’s Future (BAF) Co-Founder
Monday, December 14th, 2015
“I do believe with a new Congress and a new administration, whatever the configuration of that is…I think we have a chance to get a blue-ribbon, six-month commission to propose ways to make significant investments in the American infrastructure. And I think that would lead to doing something like all of the G20 countries have done, and that’s a long-term infrastructure revitalization program…I think with Presidential and Congressional leadership looking at one of the most significant long-range problems facing this country, I think we have a chance to start anew. If we had such a commission I would love to be part of it or chair it, and I would do it as a labor of love.”
View this complete post...Broadband Adoption Rates and Gaps in U.S. Metropolitan Areas
Thursday, December 10th, 2015
BROOKINGS INSTITUTION
METROPOLITAN POLICY PROGRAM
There is no question that the Internet is a huge boon to the economy and society, but maximizing its potential is only possible if all individuals are online. As a result, it is critical that policymakers closely track broadband adoption rates: the share of households with a DSL, cable, fiber optic, mobile broadband, satellite, or fixed wireless subscription.
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