The GROW AMERICA Act turns attention and funds to transportation

04/22/2015 — Matt Nagel

As always, there’s been a lot of talk in Washington about different bills and budgets. One conversation in particular caught our attention as it would have a direct effect on the transportation industry – The GROW AMERICA Act. Brought to the forefront by the United States Department of Transportation (U.S. DOT) (something they haven’t done in almost a decade), the GROW AMERICA Act is a $478 billion, six year transportation reauthorization proposal that provides increased funding for the nation’s highways, bridges, transit, and rail systems. We’ll leave it to the politicians to line up and take sides on the finer points of the Act, but below is a description of some of the overarching themes presented (from the U.S. DOT's fact sheet):

Specifically, the GROW AMERICA Act will provide –

• $317 billion to invest in our nation’s highway system and road safety. The proposal will increase the amount of highway funds by an average of about 29 percent above FY 2015 enacted levels, emphasizing “Fix-it-First” policies and reforms that prioritize investments for repairs and improvements to the safety of our roads and transit services, with particular attention to investments in rural and tribal areas. The proposal will also provide more than $10 billion for the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration to improve safety for all users of our highways and roads, providing a benefit of $21 for every Federal dollar used for infrastructure-related safety investments.
• $115 billion to invest in transit systems and expand transportation options. The proposal increases average transit spending by 76 percent above FY 2015 enacted levels, which will enable the expansion of new projects that improve connectivity (e.g., light rail, street cars, bus rapid transit, etc.) in suburbs, fast-growing cities, small towns, and rural communities, while still maintaining existing transit systems. The GROW AMERICA Act proposes a powerful, $5.1 billion increase in investments to address public transit’s maintenance backlog to reduce bus and rail system breakdowns; create more reliable service; and stop delays that make it harder for all commuters to get to work. The proposal also includes the innovative Rapid Growth Area Transit Program, which will provide $3.4 billion over six years to fast growing communities for bus rapid transit and other multimodal solutions to get ahead of the challenges caused by rapid growth.
• Tools and resources to encourage regional coordination and local decision making. The proposal includes policy reforms to incentivize improved regional coordination by Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs), which are local communities’ main voice in transportation planning. The GROW AMERICA Act also strengthens local decision making in allocating Federal funding so that local communities can better realize their vision for improved mobility. High-performing large MPOs will be granted control of a larger portion of funds under two federal transportation programs – the Surface Transportation Program (STP) and the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) – and these MPOs will also receive funds through a set aside under the new Fixing and Accelerating Surface Transportation (FAST) program.
• Improved tools to protect the public from dangerous vehicle and tire defects. The GROW AMERICA Act will give NHTSA the authority to issue imminent hazard orders requiring vehicle manufacturers to immediately take action to alleviate harm in cases where there is an imminent risk of injury or death. Additionally, it will improve vehicle and tire recall efforts by taking steps to ensure the public is informed of recalls at franchise dealerships, independent tire stores and state departments of motor vehicles. The Act also provides consumers more time to get tire defects fixed for free.

In short, the GROW AMERICA Act is a six-year bill that would increase investment in transportation by 45%. All sides in Washington see a need for fund allocation to transportation and infrastructure in the United States; the debate is currently circling around whether or not the GROW AMERICA Act is the right direction to take. Deadlines for a decision on plans for transportation funds have been bandied about, but nothing is set in stone. From our perspective, it’s good to know that there is a spotlight on transportation as the shipping industry would benefit from improvements to a major component in the shipping equation.

Feel free to leaf through the entire 361 page GROW AMERICA Act at your leisure!

The U.S. DOT is busy spreading the word and gaining support for the bill. Recently, they went on a bus tour to promote the Act and, earlier this month, released a video detailing the tour.