department of transportation

Chris Spear Looks Toward Upcoming Infrastructure Bill, Democrats Advance Transit and Climate Change Proposals

September 28, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

“Roads and bridges are trucking’s shop floor,” said American Trucking Associations President Chris Spear in a recent ATA Technology and Maintenance Council Fall Meeting and Transportation Technology Exhibition. “That’s where we work. And if we do not have good infrastructure, not only does trucking suffer, but so does the entire country.”

Spear has made clear his belief that the upcoming infrastructure package making waves on Capitol Hill will ultimately get the approval the trucking industry has hoped for, especially following the burden that has fallen on truckers’ shoulders throughout the pandemic era.

The $1 trillion infrastructure package is indeed “a very good bill,” Spear added, but it isn’t necessarily perfect, although “no bill ever is. But, even though it just happens to be going through Congress in a very toxic political environment, it is a very good piece of legislation that I believe will be signed into law very soon.”

The DRIVE-Safe Act’s inclusion in this bill will allow truck drivers over the age of 18 operate their commercial motor vehicles within interstate commerce–a move that Spear praises as a potential solution towards easing the current driver shortage.

“This industry is now recognized at a level we never thought possible,” Spear said. “It feels good to get a pat on the back. Truckers don’t have the luxury of telecommuting to work, but truckers rose to the challenge [during the pandemic], despite our drivers having no idea what kind of impact COVID would have on them or their families.”

After House Democrats advanced the climate change and transit proposals in the transportation budget bill–part of Democrats’ $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill–chamber leaders are expected to finalize overall proposal plans by the end of September.

“From tackling climate change, to addressing racial and environmental injustices, to building back better after the COVID-19 pandemic, our nation faces big challenges.” said Chairman Peter DeFazio following the panel’s approval of the budget bill. “By advancing this legislation, we’re taking a key step forward in addressing those challenges.”

The transportation measure would allocate $10 billion for low-income communities, $6 billion for local surface transportation priority projects (with specific funding at congressional districts), $4 billion for greenhouse gas emissions reduction projects across surface transportation corridors, and $4 billion for safety programs and transportation equity efforts. Another $2.5 billion will be dedicated to port infrastructure projects and freight supply chain resilience projects, $1 billion will be dedicated to low-emission tech project developments through the U.S. Department of Transportation, $1 billion will be offered to energy-efficient building promotion through the U.S. General Services Administration, and an additional $500 million will be offered to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

“With this legislation, we can reduce carbon pollution from the transportation sector that’s driving the climate crisis and make communities more resilient to extreme weather events, connect people with good-paying jobs and affordable housing, address the planning mistakes of the past by reconnecting communities, make meaningful investments to plan or and develop high-speed rail projects, provide more people [with] access to clean water, and make our aviation and maritime sectors greener,” explain DeFazio.

The transportation budget bill will likely be included in the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation legislation by the House Democratic Caucus, with major measures working to boost electric vehicle infrastructure, improve climate change infrastructure resilience, implement social safety net improvements, and support childcare and elderly healthcare assistance. Democratic leaders within the Senate are also aiming to legislate on the bill in September.

Social infrastructure plan-related economic benefits, along with climate change improvements, are the main focus of Biden’s ‘Build Back Better’ agenda.

“My ‘Build Back Better’ plan calls for significant new investments in upgrading research infrastructure [and] laboratories all across the country,” Biden said. “We’ll be making one of those breakthroughs in solar and wind [with] storage out of these facilities. [We’ll] out-innovate the rest of the world and drive down the costs of renewable energy.”

These improvements have indeed been a long time coming, democrats say.

“Senate Democrats have been working around the clock for weeks and months with our House colleagues and the Biden administration on the ‘Build Back Better’ agenda,” said Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. “We know the American people are facing challenges of monumental proportion. So, we must–and we will–pass legislation that meets the moment.

$274 Billion Dedicated to Transportation, Buttigieg to Oversee $105 Billion

August 14, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

$274 billion in new funding will be dedicated to the transportation industry as part of a $550 billion infrastructure spending package.

This is an unprecedented amount of funding to be allocated toward American bridge, highway, road, port, rail, transit, and airport improvement projects, which comes through the latest bipartisan Senate infrastructure bill. This 2,702-page legislation will also allow Pete Buttigieg, Transportation Secretary, to have complete oversight regarding a $105 billion portion of those funds.

The bill comes after collaborative efforts between 11 Democrats and 11 Republicans have been underway and will have significant effects on EPA and Interior and Energy Department programs and the funding allotted for them. Still, though, it appears that the Department of Transportation will be coming out on top.

In fact, DOT will receive the majority of new funds, including $105 billion allocated for DOT grant programs, according to Eno Center of Transportation‘s Jeff Davis. Although all programs awarding grants must follow certain regulations, discretionary grants distributed by the transportation secretary have come out to be “way more than any other grant,” according to Davis.

The breakdown: $66 million will be dedicated to rail improvements, including $58 billion for Amtrak’s national railroad network, its federal and state partnerships regarding intercity rail capabilities, and its Northeast Corridor. The bill’s appropriations title, which is a supplemental spending fund, will distribute $1.2 billion annually to Amtrak’s Northeast Corridor–coming out to $6 billion a year. Over the course of the next five years, all of Amtrak’s networks will receive around $16 billion, and intercity passenger rail capabilities will receive $36 billion.

These funds for Amtrak are “transformational,” said Rail Passengers Association president and CEO, Jim Mathews. Although the legislation did not implement a passenger rail trust fund, the policies outlined in the new bill are extremely helpful, he added.

In fact, the legislation made clear that the transportation sector wants “to see [Amtrak] do a good job with the money [they] give [it], but [they’re] not trying to make [Amtrak] have a profit,” Mathews explained, noting that the language in the bill made clear that Amtrak is indeed a service supported by the nation’s taxpayers.

Additionally, transit will be offered a $19 billion increase in contract authority as well as $10.25 billion for new transit infrastructure grant funding as part of its overall $39 billion package. $8 billion will be allocated toward Capital Investment Grants regarding improvements and upgrades within light rail, commuter rail, heavy rail, bus rapid transit and streetcar transit projects. For accessibility station capabilities for persons with disabilities and the elderly, the bill awards another $1.75 billion.

The bill indicates that $118 billion will be taken from general revenue to help projects working to repair and improve roadways across the country, and that gas tax revenue will now fund the federal Highway Trust Fund. Highway projects themselves will also be given $110 billion, with $55 billion of that dedicated to contract authority and another $55 billion for other appropriations.

A pilot program for user fee implementation regarding vehicle miles traveled will also receive funding; however, legislators will need to find methods of solving issues surrounding current federal transportation policies, as well as how to help the Highway Trust Fund become much more efficient.

Federal dollars have also been repurposed in a way to generate revenue for transportation through the bill, including the $205 billion in federal funding for the coronavirus relief bill. For that particular bill, $3 billion was also repurposed from airline payroll support, although passenger airlines used the majority of their $40 billion payroll support packages during the course of the pandemic. Of the $4 billion allocated for payroll support within cargo airlines, only $1 billion was used, leaving the $3 billion up for grabs.

Finally, airports will receive $15 billion over the course of the next five years for tower and runway projects, $5 billion for FAA equipment and facility improvements, and $5 billion for other discretionary grants.

$1 Trillion Infrastructure Package in the Works, Senators Seek Public Support

August 13, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

“The pandemic that we have endured for more than a year laid bare the disparities in access to high-speed internet,” said Senator Susan Collins of Maine this month in regards to a $65 billion broadband package.

This funding comes as part of an almost $1 trillion infrastructure package recently developed by Senators now working to gain support from American citizens ahead of a vote that would bring a major boost to the priorities outlined in the plan.

“We have to do right by our Native people,” said Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski, who explained that the legislation would help Native Alaskans in rural regions of the state gain more access to running water. The bill itself would allocate around $55 billion for wastewater and water systems in those areas.

“It is critically important we keep our aging bridges and roads and airports up to snuff,” said Senator Jon Tester regarding Montana’s piece of the pie, as $110 of the package’s funds would be dedicated to Montana road and bridge projects working to improve access to farms across the state.

“My state has lost as much land as in the entire state of Delaware,” added Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy. “But other states are losing land, too.” For Louisiana projects aiming to reduce coastal erosion, the bill would offer around $16 billion for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to be able to see such efforts through.

The G-10 group of lawmakers that consists of five Democratic and five Republican senators has been working to address the concerns of citizens across the country in regards to improved internet service, road construction, and airports. Additionally, the group has been pushing for bipartisan efforts on Capitol Hill, although many interest groups within both parties have been targeting aspects of the package with which they don’t agree.

Still, though, package supporters have been confident the legislation will be approved by the Senate, although it doesn’t check all of everyone’s boxes.

“It is clear that the deal does not meet the moment on climate or justice,” said League of Conservation Voters’ senior vice president, Tiernan Sittenfeld.

In addition to concerns around climate change, other political leaders have argued that the package will move too far away from utilizing user fees like gas taxes or tolls to be easily able to fund highway projects. Additionally, some say the legislation will require further federal spending even after the $5 trillion government package allocated for coronavirus relief efforts.

This month, the Treasury Department made clear that Congress had been getting very close to the country’s overall debt limit.

“Every single time we add an enormous sum to our national debt, there is bipartisanship behind it,” said Utah Senator Mike Lee.

60 votes are needed for the smaller infrastructure bill to be amended and passed by the Senate, and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is determined to quickly pass the bill so that the Senate will be able to focus on the budget plan for the fall’s $3.5 trillion package. This Democratic bill will focus on spending in regards to environmental efforts, healthcare, and social programs.

Politicians working to allow further debate over the package have received support from Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell. Still, though, McConnell has not made clear which way he will vote, but has referred to the legislation as having the potential to become a “bipartisan success story for the country,” although he is wary about Democrats working to expedite its amendment.

“Like a lot of us, I’m interested in what it looks like in the end,” he said, adding that “the past two administrations tried to do it, [and] were unable to. The American people need it. I think it’s one of those areas where there seems to be broad, bipartisan agreement.”

Senators did in fact approve three of the non-controversial amendments–and rejected three others–as they continued to work to determine in what manner the package should be changed and how much effort should be dedicated to doing so with the 60-vote threshold at hand.

The bipartisan package is likely to allocate not only $110 billion in new road and bridge project spending as well as $55 billion for wastewater and water infrastructure, but also $66 billion for rail improvements and $38 billion for public transit projects.

Further spending will be dedicated to projects regarding the improvement and upgrading of broadband internet, electric vehicle charging infrastructure, ports, and airports.

Cybersecurity Big Focus for Senate Following Pipeline Attack

August 3, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

To boost overall security operations after a serious cyberattack on the Colonial Pipeline, The U.S. Senate’s freight committee leaders are currently calling upon the Biden administration, private industry stakeholders, and congressional colleagues to take swift action.

Cyberattacks of this caliber are potentially able to shut down all infrastructure operations, and the threat of such an event is still a major risk for the country, explained Maria Cantwell, Senate Commerce Committee Chairwoman. With several states undergoing a large disruption in regards to their petroleum materials during May’s Colonial Pipeline cyberattack–an event which hurt the nation’s economy–cybersecurity clearly needs some major improvements.

The Colonial Pipeline had to pay around $4.4 million to be able to restart its systems after the cyberattack affected its 5,500 miles of pipe which transport around 100 million gallons of fuel every day. Additionally, federal agencies have been recently cyberattacked by SolarWinds Russian intelligence, and Microsoft Exchange users were recently targeted in the ‘Hafnium’ attack. Other municipal and state agencies have been victims of cyberattacks recently, as well.

“The rapid growth in the number and sophistication of cyberattacks is the alarm bell ringing about the need to immediately bolster the cybersecurity of our critical infrastructure,” said Chairwoman Cantwell in a recent Senate hearing.

Because the nation’s infrastructure is indeed at risk, the federal government needs to bring options quickly in regards to solving this massive issue, she added.

“The federal government should be part of the solution,” Cantwell continued. “We need to bring about critical infrastructure investments in technology that can help the electricity grid and companies secure their networks from these kinds of intrusions.”

Both Cantwell and Senator Roger Wicker noted that there is effective legislation in the works that could help improve overall protections of the pipeline. Wicker currently serves as the panel’s ranking member and explained that public-private collaborations meaning to bring boosted safety to infrastructure networks and pipeline operations, as well as interagency operability, could have major benefits for overall protection against cyberattacks and to the pipeline itself.

“As the federal government considers ways to improve the cybersecurity framework of the pipeline sector, it will be increasingly important for the public and private sectors to coordinate their efforts more closely,” Wicker said. “Coordination between government and industry is needed to improve information sharing about emerging cyber threats and best practices to address them. Industry [experts] should also build strong relationships with their regulators and law enforcement to increase that collaboration.”

In an effort to indeed prevent cyber attacks like that endured by the Colonial Pipeline, U.S. Department of Transportation Deputy Secretary, Polly Trottenberg, noted that the Department of Transportation is working with other agencies to find the best methods of doing so. In fact, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is working to bolster enforcement and inspections across its countrywide operations, especially to monitor pipeline control rooms, improve emergency response plans, and revise integrity management plan requirements within the agency.

“The Colonial Pipeline cybersecurity incident spotlighted the importance of trust and timely information sharing, as well as public and private sector partnership in transportation cybersecurity,” Trottenberg told senators. “It also underscored that we need to keep learning and adapting quickly to meet increasingly complex and sophisticated cybersecurity challenges.”

She noted that collaborative efforts are key in making these improvements become successful and long-lasting.

“DOT will continue to work across the federal government and with the private sector to advance the cybersecurity of the pipelines that fuel and sustain our nation,” she added.

President Biden has issued an executive order following the pipeline attack to bring about strengthened federal capabilities regarding cybersecurity; the order began these efforts by establishing a cybersecurity safety review board. Additionally, the Transportation Security Administration is working to further evaluate and integrate cybersecurity across the entire transportation sector and within other agencies aligned with the industry, according to the agency’s administrator, David Pekoske.

“The pipeline system is crucial to U.S. national security, transportation, and our energy supply,’ Pekoske said. “These pipelines provide connections to other critical infrastructure upon which we depend, such as power plants and the aviation gasoline fuel supply for airplanes.”

Kentucky, Wisconsin Issue Boosted Funding for Major Transportation Projects

July 28, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

$500,000 in grants to boost river port equipment replacement and other critical repairs is in the works to help the state of Kentucky’s freight movement, announced Governor Andy Beshear this month.

These grants will be allocated to give particular river port operators–those in Louisville, Owensboro, Hickman, Paducah, and Eddyville–funds that will be matched by port authorities and will aid in funding bulk material-processing equipment.

“Kentucky’s river ports play a vital role in the flow of freight across our waterways,” said Jim Gray, Transportation Cabinet Secretary. “These funds will go a long way to upgrade daily operations and spur economic opportunities.”

The Louisville-Jefferson County Riverport Authority was granted the largest award of $178,803 to help in a rail line construction project that will reach a length of 1,775 feet and bypass the highly-congested outer rail loop in the area. This new rail line will hopefully boost rail traffic movement, efficiency, and safety.

The Hickman-Fulton County Riverport Authority will receive $136,265 to replace a bulk material-loading, 40-year-old front-end loader with a new model accessible between barges and trucks. The Eddyville Riverport and Industrial Development Authority has also been granted around $126,500 for main loading dock reparations in order to help prevent corrosion-related issues pertaining to the dock’s steel components; efforts will include adding new concrete fenders, installing new steel plates, replacing currently-eroded dock tieback rods, and grouting any empty spaces in the dock itself.

$34,807 will be allocated to the Owensboro Riverport Authority to buy a new bulk product-handling compact track loader, and $23,625 will be granted to the Paducah-McCracken County Riverport Authority to buy a bulk product-transferring clamshell bucket to replace its currently aging equipment.

“From roads to river ports, quality transportation systems are vital to support a thriving economy,” said Beshear. “This investment in our river ports will improve operations to move cargo more efficiently and safely.”

The Kentucky Water Transportation Advisory Board recommended these particular awards, and the board not only assesses requests for river port grants themselves, but also suggests future economic growth-enhancing steps to boost the state’s waterways and river ports in general.

Also announcing financial assistant grants is the state of Wisconsin, which recently expressed its intent to distribute $160.2 million throughout the state for transportation projects.

This is the third quarterly transportation fund allocation offered to local government agencies this year; Wisconsin sites and towns have been receiving quarterly payments every three months throughout 2021.

“Support for local governments’ transportation projects keeps goods and services moving throughout Wisconsin,” said Craig Thompson, Secretary-Designee for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation. “We are committed to investing wisely and working cooperatively to build good transportation solutions that support safety, economic development, and our quality of life.”

The General Transportation Aids program is an effort to offer state aid in response to county and municipal road construction, traffic operation, and maintenance costs. Typically, this funding comes from state vehicle registration fees and fuel taxes.

$156.9 million of these funds were granted to local government groups as General Transportation Aids, $3 million was granted to 116 eligible cities through Connecting Highway Aids, and $255,975 was granted for Expressway Policing Aids in Milwaukee County.

Now, the Connecting Highway Aids program helps with maintenance costs regarding segment-connecting roads throughout Wisconsin’s highway system. Specifically, the program is able to offer funds to local governments for municipal street-routed traffic costs. These “connecting highways” are explained by the Wisconsin Department of Transportation as consisting of the local roads and streets routing state highway traffic through state towns and cities.

This boost in assistance funding comes as part of $465 million in new transportation project funding allocated through the 2019-2020 Wisconsin state budget. This budget, in addition to the General Transportation Aids Assistance’s 10% increase, included $320 million in State Highway Rehabilitation program funding as well as an additional one-time grant of $90 million for the state’s Local Roads Improvement Program.

Colonial Pipeline Cyberattack Brings Array of Waivers at State and Federal Levels

June 14, 2021 by Levinson and Stefani Leave a Comment

The recent Colonial Pipeline cyberattack is causing state and federal government organizations to take effective courses of actions in response, including methods to help ease disruptions in truck movement. The ransomware attack, which is believed to have ties to a criminal gang, caused the network reaching from Texas all the way to New Jersey to immediately cease its operations.

For states that have been particularly impacted, a solution to help these effects is being offered by the U.S. Department of Transportation. States covered by presidential declarations of disaster–declarations released within the last four months–are able to transport overweight fuel and gasoline loads by using interstate highways, DOT announced.

“Each state must continue to follow its own procedures for issuance of special permits authorizing the loads, but the added flexibility announced today lawfully permits these trucks to run on the interstate highway system and other federal highways,” explained DOT in its announcement.

This state comes after another recent announcement released by the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration aiming to offer hours-of-service regulation relief to truck drivers operating within East Coast petroleum supply chains. The hours-of-service flexibility applied to the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington D.C., and West Virginia.

To efficiently assess the capacity of railroad operators to transport fuel between inland communities and coastal ports, the Federal Railroad administration has implemented a specific emergency action plan, and other DOT organizations have been actively making efforts as well.

For the permission of trucks to operate on interstate highways, previous presidential declarations have allowed such emergency protocol updates to last for up to four months, and those instated will be expiring at different times throughout the year. For example. Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, New Jersey, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia are covered for a while, but Maryland’s 120-day period will end in early June and Virginia’s in early September.

Pipeline operator qualification regulations have been temporarily relaxed for emergency workers needed to help the partial manual of the system get back up and running. This announcement, set forth by the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, is only applicable to places operating without appropriate resources for the Colonial Pipeline–a result of the recent cyberattack.

The incident has brought forth responses from many state officials, including Georgia Governor Brian Kemp’s signing of a state of emergency which suspended state fuel taxes and permitted fuel haulers to bypass weigh stations. The state of emergency also prohibited fuel price gouging. In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis signed a state of emergency allowing the Florida Department of Transportation to waive restrictions on weight and size for divisible loads on vehicles that are actively helping in emergency response efforts.

Additionally, executive orders were signed by Virginia Governor Ralph Northam to allow state agencies to offer waivers to marshal public resources, by North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper to suspend motor vehicle regulations in an effort to allow state fuel supplies to be sufficient, and by Maryland Governor Larry Hogan to waive hours-of-service requirements and weight restrictions for carriers.

“Many states are working in concert to minimize the disruption of fuel supplies,” said Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Secretary Jim Gray. “Our cabinet is doing its part to help ensure that needed relief gets to the affected areas.” Gray signed an order to suspend motor carrier restrictions involving the transportation of ethanol and petroleum to states that have been impacted by these interruptions.

A multi-agency response has also been implemented by the Biden administration, and includes the departments of Justice, Homeland Security, Treasury, Energy, and Defense; the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency; the Environmental Protection Agency; the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission; and the Department of Transportation. To gain a better understanding of the cyberattack and its effects on energy and fuel supply, these organizations have been meeting regularly.

“ATA is aware of some locations being temporarily out of diesel fuel, but we are not hearing reports of it being a widespread issue yet,” said spokesman for American Trucking Associations, Sean McNally, who noted that other freight industry members are also doing their part to solve this problem. “We are closely monitoring the situation and are providing information to our members as needed.”