U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has sent the Obama Administration’s long-term transportation bill, titled Grow America, as the House and Senate face looming deadlines to avoid the economic uncertainty and job loss that could ensue if the Highway Trust Fund runs out of money this summer.

Obama’s vision for the $302 billion, four-year surface transportation reauthorization bill stands to create millions of jobs and lay the foundation for long-term competitiveness in rebuilding the crumbling infrastructure of roads and bridges. U.S. DOT says many states have postponed or canceled needed transportation projects altogether. Despite this growing need, the Highway Trust Fund, which provides most of the federal support for state transportation projects, is on track to start bouncing checks as early as August.

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“Failing to act is unacceptable – and unaffordable,” Secretary Foxx says. “This proposal offers the kind of job creation and certainty that the American people want and deserve.”

The U.S. DOT says the plan will not add to the deficit by relying on the President’s proposed pro-growth business tax reforms, and represents a number of proposals that have historically attracted bipartisan support.

“Grow America makes the sizable investment needed to improve our country’s roads and bridges,” said Deputy Federal Highway Administrator Gregory Nadeau. “Improving U.S. infrastructure is a national priority, and will ensure America’s economy remains robust for generations yet to come.”

Deputy Federal Transit Administrator Therese McMillan says Grow America will invest in avenues and opportunity for the many millions of Americans who want to work or simply need a reliable and safe way to get to work. She says it will put thousands to work on repairing and expanding our aging transit infrastructure, and will fill the jobs gap in transit through innovative new workforce development programs.

Speaking to the bus and motorcoach industry, Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administrator Anne S. Ferro sees commercial bus travel growing increasingly popular, and says this legislation will make this segment even safer by expanding oversight to bus ticket brokers and the locations where motorcoaches can be inspected.

David Hubbard
Executive Editor
BUSRide Magazine

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