A similar measure to restore the $8 billion to the HTF was put forward in the House of Representatives by Representative Nancy Boyda (D-Kan.) and Jerry Moran (R-Kan.). However, the transportation bill passed by the House Appropriations subcommittee does not include the transfer of funds to fix the trust fund. Subcommittee Chairman John Olver (D-Mass.) insists that the jurisdiction for such a fix lies with the House Ways and Means and Transportation and Infrastructure committees.

Peters announces new transportation plan

While transportation funding was being discussed on Capitol Hill, U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary Peters announced the Bush Administration’s new plan to address the nation’s transportation woes. “Without a doubt, our federal approach to transportation is broken,” said Peters, according to a U.S. Department of Transportation press release, “and no amount of tweaking, adjusting, or adding new layers on top will make things better. It is time for a new, a different, and a better approach.” The administration’s new plan would reform the nation’s transportation programs by renewing federal focus on maintaining and improving the Interstate Highway System instead of diverting funds for wasteful pet projects and programs. According to Peters, the plan would do the following:

* Address urban congestion and give state and local leaders the flexibility to invest in their most needed transit and highway priorities;

* Create a Metropolitan Innovation Fund to reward cities willing to combine a mix of transit investments, dynamic pricing of highways, and new traffic technologies;

* Replace the current 102 federal transportation programs with eight intermodal programs to help focus investments;

* Refocus emphasis on safety, using a data- and technology-driven approach that gives states the flexibility to tackle tough safety challenges;

* Streamline the federal review process to ask the same environmental and planning questions and to provide quick answers; and

* Find new revenue sources to supplement the gas tax, including options such as tolling and empowering states to take advantage of the more than $400 billion in private-sector funding available worldwide for infrastructure investments.