Transforming the transport
industry in the USA
revenue generating options to
best suit their constituents.
Others are eliminating certain
choices based on their
interpretation of constituent
sentiments or limiting their
options to a select few. Many are
simply frozen with indecision
for fear of being held
accountable for possibly making
the wrong policy decision.
Complexity and inaction
Faced with such complex policy
decisions, many transportation
professionals and lawmakers
are unable to determine a clear
direction for future
transportation policy. The ‘do
nothing’ option prevails, right
or wrong. Examples of policy
struggles across the USA are
numerous for each of the above
stated policy choices.
charge or levy a special
congestion charge on specific
links in the network or the
entire central business district,
introducing a distance based
charge within an entire
jurisdiction for all vehicles on
all roads, and diverting revenue
for transportation from other
taxes. Another response is to
simply do nothing.
Each of these options have
their pros and cons, although
many would point out that
doing nothing is not an option
considering the increases in
registered vehicles, light, and
heavy commercial vehicles, trip
generation, and age of the
bespoke infrastructure.
Decision makers
Some policy makers are
studying the entire spectrum of
Technology Profile |
Today’s transportation
| Need to know
Under the US
Federated divisions of
powers, US states have
the right to raise their
own fuels excise taxes
Traffic Technology International September/October 2019
www.TrafficTechnologyToday.com
074
policy environment is
strapped with declining
revenues and increasing service
and capital costs. However,
national, state and local
jurisdictions have a plethora of
transportation policy choices.
As the toolbox has grown with
these options, policy makers
and transportation planners
struggle to plot out a future
course of action to meet their
growing revenue and
transportation needs.
The current choices or tools
in the policy decision set are
numerous and far ranging. They
span a wide range of diverse
options such as increasing fuels
excise taxes, employing express
lanes to generate revenue for the
maintenance or expanding an
existing facility, and expanding
or introducing tolling on new
and old facilities.
Other alternatives include
creating low emission zones
that allow the polluters to
pay, implementing a congestion
A good example of such
inaction is the long-standing
environment in the USA’s senior
levels of the administration and
congress being unable to even
raise gas tax, which was last
increased in 1993. During
multiple bi-partisan meetings
with congressional leadership
and the White House, a renewed
glimmer of hope for funding
infrastructure was reached
earlier this year. This hope faded
quickly due to the lack of
funding for such a program.
The lack of clarity on what
projects could be funded or how
the money could be spent was
cited. Current levels of the
national debt – and a general
lack of priority among
competing demands for health,
education, immigration, defense
and other priorities – make for
> The state of Ohio is the
30th state to raise or
reform its gas tax
> Policy makers and
transportation planners
are struggling to plot out
a future course of action
to meet their growing
revenue and
transportation needs
due to the wide range
of potential actionables
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