Flaherty and Mohammed: Recent transit priorities are concerning

Transportation should not be framed as a zero-sum war between cars and every other form of transit.”

John D. Flaherty and Jakim Mohammed represent the Delaware Transit Coalition. The following was also sent to U.S. transportation secretary Sean Duffy on Tuesday, Aug. 11.

We are writing to express deep concern regarding the policy priorities outlined in your surface transportation reauthorization proposal.

While maintaining safe, efficient roads and bridges is a shared national priority, the strategy put forward by the U.S. Department of Transportation misinterprets the future of mobility, weakens our economic competitiveness and sidelines the proven clean energy and transit solutions that millions of Americans rely on every day.

Transportation should not be framed as a zero-sum war between cars and every other form of transit.

True freedom of choice means giving Americans safe, reliable and modern options — whether they choose to drive, take a train, catch a bus, ride a bike or generate clean power along our public rights-of-way.

Below are the key areas where your proposed policy framework fails American commuters and workers, along with an alternative path forward.

Defending mass transit and protecting mass transit account

The proposal to eliminate the mass transit account and consolidate all fuel tax revenues into the highway account is a major step backward.

Stripping dedicated federal support from public transportation will exacerbate severe traffic congestion, harm urban and suburban economies, and disproportionately penalize low-income workers, older adults and students who rely on buses and trains for daily mobility.

Further, conditioning federal transit funding on strict crime metrics, while threatening to withhold up to 100% of formula funds, starves local agencies of the exact resources they need to modernize facilities, improve station security and hire safety personnel.

We must fund transit to make it safer, not defund it for being vulnerable.

Investing in high-speed and intercity rail

While we acknowledge the proposed funding increases for New York’s Penn Station and The Gateway Program, the broader rail priorities fall short.

Consolidating critical passenger rail grants without guaranteeing robust, long-term funding for Amtrak’s national network and Northeast Corridor threatens passenger rail expansion across the country.

As other global economies invest heavily in modern, high-speed rail networks, America cannot afford to fall behind.

Expanding Amtrak routes, modernizing rolling stock and upgrading aging rail infrastructure across both rural and urban corridors is essential to easing highway congestion and connecting regional economies.

Embracing clean energy integration: solar carports and wind energy

It is shortsighted to gut programs that support clean energy deployment and zero-emission transit systems — such as the Charging and Fueling Infrastructure Grant Program, the Carbon Reduction Program and zero-emission bus/ferry set-asides.

Department of Transportation rights-of-way, rest areas, commuter parking lots and maintenance facilities represent thousands of acres of ideal land for renewable energy generation.

We should actively encourage:

• Solar carports — Install solar canopy structures over commuter parking facilities, park-and-ride lots and rail stations to generate clean power, charge electric transit fleets, shield vehicles from harsh weather and create new revenue streams for transit authorities.
• Windmills along rights-of-way — Utilize highway and rail rights-of-way for distributed wind turbines and clean power generation to feed directly into smart digital infrastructure and national energy grids.

Decoupled from ideological debates, clean energy integration into surface infrastructure lowers operational costs for transit agencies and strengthens national energy independence.

Protecting micromobility and safe streets

Restricting competitive and formula funding for dedicated bicycle lanes and encouraging the removal of existing active transportation infrastructure are dangerous mistakes.

Multimodal road design (“complete streets”) does not degrade driver performance; it saves lives, reduces traffic violence and gives commuters an affordable alternative for short trips.

Eliminating active transportation investments will increase traffic fatalities, worsen local gridlock and restrict mobility options for millions of nondrivers.

Smarter path forward

The “golden age of transportation” cannot be built by repeating 1950s highway-only policies. A forward-thinking reauthorization bill must:

• Protect the mass transit account and provide predictable formula funding to ensure local transit systems are safe, clean and reliable.
• Fully fund Amtrak and regional rail to build out high-speed passenger networks that take passenger traffic off overburdened highways.
• Modernize the grid via DOT assets by incentivizing solar carports at transit centers, utilizing rights-of-way for renewable energy (solar/wind) and building resilient grid infrastructure.
• Maintain safe options for all users by funding complete streets, safe bike networks and micromobility infrastructure, alongside traditional highway maintenance.

America’s transportation strategy should be bold, balanced and prepared for the next century.

We urge you to reconsider these restrictive policy proposals and work with Congress to deliver a reauthorization bill that embraces transit, clean power and modern mobility for all Americans.

Reader reactions, pro or con, are welcomed at civiltalk@iniusa.org.