USDOT proposal to eliminate federal transit funding will 'strand millions of Americans'- Transportation For America

Headlines are quick hits from media outlets from Missouri and around the world. Follow the headline link for the full story. The source of this headline says:

In response to reports from Politico that the Trump administration is proposing to eliminate federal transit funding and the flexibility states have to determine how to spend their own formula dollars, Steve Davis, Director of Transportation for America, offered this statement:

“This short-sighted proposal will annihilate state and local transportation budgets, strand millions of Americans who depend on transit every day in red and blue states alike, produce chaos and increase congestion, seize control from states, and utterly fail to actually solve our most pressing long-term transportation funding issues. The highway formula program alone spends $20 billion more than what the gas tax brings in every year—stealing transit funds won’t change that. Eliminating federal transit funding would cut the transportation options millions depend on and leave families paying even more just to get to work, school, or anywhere else they need to be. This unserious idea should be dead on arrival in Congress, as was a similar proposal in 2012 that was booed out of the room.

The FHWA proposal says that “highway funds should be spent on highway projects,” but gas tax dollars haven’t been exclusively “highway” funds since 1982, when the federal gas tax was raised from 4 to 9 cents and 20 percent of all gas tax funds were permanently devoted to transit. This historic practice—enshrined in a bipartisan deal approved by President Ronald Reagan—has continued for 43 years with broad support in Congress and amongst stakeholders, including the association representing state departments of transportation (AASHTO).

MoBikeEd comment: The phoposal to fund only highways obviously affects transit, biking and walking funding, insantly eliminating the single largest source of funding for each of those, and having untold negative effects on Americans' future health and mobility.

The BikeLeague has a response page where you can let your members of Congress know where you stand on this issue:

https://www.votervoice.net/mobile/BikeLeague/Campaigns/131366/Respond

Only an outpouring of support from milions of American citizens can stop this terrible plan - so please take a moment to send a response.

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USDOT proposal to eliminate federal transit funding will 'strand millions of Americans'- Transportation For America