ASLRRA Applauds 5-Year, $494B INVEST Act

Andrew Corselli Jun 3, 2020

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  1. Andrew Corselli

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    The INVEST Act’s aim is to invest in infrastructure that is smarter, safer and made to last. The breakdown of funds is as follows, with details below: Highways investments: $319 billion; transit investments: $105 billion; passenger vehicle and commercial motor vehicle safety investments: $10 billion; and rail investments: $60 billion.

    In response to the INVEST Act’s unveiling, Chuck Baker, President, ASLRRA, which represents the nation’s 600 small business railroads and their suppliers, released the following statement:

    “With the FAST Act expiring at the end of September, we applaud Chairman DeFazio’s release of a five-year surface transportation reauthorization bill,” he said. “We look forward to working with both the House and the Senate as the process moves forward and hopefully culminates in the enactment of a long-term, bipartisan bill. There will be many policies considered in this bill that are crucially important to the ability of the short line freight railroad industry to meet the evolving needs of our customers, enabling thousands of important agricultural, energy, and industrial shippers in small-town and rural America to remain connected to the national and global economies.”

    The fund details are as follows:

    Highways Investments: $319 Billion

    • Delivers better roads and bridges faster by prioritizing fixing the broken, outdated infrastructure we already have, including 47,000 structurally deficient bridges, before building new highway capacity.
    • Modernizes our infrastructure with bold new funding for addressing gridlock and the most impactful projects and bottlenecks that affect local regions and the national transportation network.
    • Measures state-by-state greenhouse gas emissions, with incentives for best performers in carbon pollution reduction, and a new program to fund resilient infrastructure that can withstand the impacts of climate change.
    • Dramatically increases funding for development of charging stations and other alternative fueling options for electric and zero-emissions vehicles.
    • Addresses rising rates of pedestrian and bicyclist deaths by requiring States with the highest rates to set aside funding to tackle the problem, codifies and expands eligibility for safe routes to school, provides funding to develop active transportation networks, and strengthens emphasis on high risk rural roads.
    • Doubles funding for technology deployment to increase innovation and creates new program to fund green materials research and to deploy green construction materials and practices to create smarter, more efficient transportation systems.
    Transit Investments: $105 Billion

    • Increases funding for transit agencies to add new routes and provide more reliable service, encouraging viable public transit options and fewer single-occupant cars clogging highways.
    • Creates a Mobility Innovation program to permit transit agencies to collaborate on mobility on demand services.
    • Strengthens Buy America provisions to boost domestic jobs in rail and bus manufacturing.
    • Increases investment in zero-emission buses to reduce carbon pollution.
    • Streamlines project delivery by reforming the Capital Investment Grants program so that our investments get shovels in the ground quicker and commuters see results faster.
    • Provides the investments needed to address the growing backlog of transit maintenance needs, making public transit safer and more reliable.
    Passenger Vehicle and Commercial Motor Vehicle Safety Investments: $10 billion

    • Boosts funding for highway safety programs under the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, providing $5.3 billion over five years.
    • Increases funding for truck and bus safety programs under the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, providing $4.6 billion over five years.
    Rail Investments: $60 Billion

    • Triples funding for Amtrak to $29 billion over five years, allowing for improvement and expansion of the Nation’s passenger rail network, including the Northeast Corridor (NEC) and the National Network, giving travelers a reliable, low-carbon option to travel both short and long distances, including to regions that lack frequent or affordable airport service.
    • Invests in Amtrak stations, facilities, services, and modernization of its equipment, while continuing Amtrak’s legacy of serving long-distance, state-supported, and Northeast Corridor passengers and ensuring a skilled Amtrak workforce.
    • Creates a new $19 billion program, the Passenger Rail Improvement, Modernization and Expansion (PRIME) grant program, devoted entirely to passenger rail improvements and expansion, performance optimization, and intercity passenger rail transportation expansion.
    • Dramatically increases funding for the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements (CRISI) grant program to $7 billion to fund passenger and freight rail projects. Expands program eligibilities and allows commuter rail authorities to compete for funds.
    • Helps communities improve safety at rail crossings with a new $2.5 billion grade separation grant program.
    • Addresses “long trains,” trains longer than 7,500 feet, as well as train crossings that are blocked more than 10 minutes, which impact local traffic and emergency response times.
    • Prohibits U.S. DOT from allowing the transport of liquified natural gas by rail tank car until extensive safety analysis is performed and additional conditions are met.

    The post ASLRRA Applauds 5-Year, $494B INVEST Act appeared first on Railway Age.

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