TESTIMONY OF THE
AMERICAN PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION ASSOCIATION
BEFORE THE
SENATE SUBCOMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION, TREASURY
& INDEPENDENT AGENCIES
OF THE
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE
ON TRANSIT FUNDING FOR FISCAL YEAR 2004
*******
May 15, 2003
SUBMITTED BY
American Public Transportation Association
1666 K Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20006
(202) 496-4800
APTA is a nonprofit international association of over 1,500 public and private member organizations including transit systems and commuter rail operators; planning, design, construction and finance firms; product and service providers; academic institutions; transit associations and state departments of transportation. APTA members serve the public interest by providing safe, efficient and economical transit services and products. Over ninety percent of persons using public transportation in the United States and Canada are served by APTA members.
INTRODUCTION
Mr. Chairman and members of the subcommittee, on behalf of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA), I thank you for this opportunity to address the need for federal investment in public transportation programs under the Transportation, Treasury and Independent Agencies Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2004.
ABOUT APTA
APTA’s 1,500 public and private member organizations serve the public by providing safe, efficient, and economical public transportation service, and by working to ensure that those services and products support national economic, energy, environmental, and community goals.
APTA member organizations include public transit systems and commuter railroads; design, construction and finance firms; product and service providers; academic institutions; and state associations and departments of transportation. More than ninety percent of the people who use public transportation in the United States and Canada are served by APTA member systems.
OVERVIEW
Mr. Chairman, throughout the U.S., public transportation is undergoing a renaissance. Steady increases in transit investment have dramatically improved and expanded public transportation services, attracting record numbers of riders on state-of-the-art systems in metropolitan, small urban and rural areas.
In a recent five-year period alone, public transportation use has increased by 22 percent – growing faster than vehicle miles and airline passenger miles traveled over the same period. In 2001, Americans used public transportation 9.5 billion times – the highest ridership level in 40 years.
Communities across the country are rehabilitating and expanding public transportation systems and constructing new ones. More than 550 local public transportation operators currently provide services in 319 urbanized areas; 1,260 organizations provide public transportation in rural areas; and 3,660 organizations provide services to the aging population and disabled individuals.
Through improved mobility, safety, security, economic opportunity and environmental quality, public transportation benefits every segment of American society – individuals, families, businesses, industries and communities – and supports important national goals and policies.
At the same time, the growing problem of traffic congestion continues to choke America’s roadways and constrain community and business development. Polls consistently show that most Americans view congestion as a serious problem that continues to grow every year. In April of 2003, APTA and the American Automobile Association (AAA) released the results of a poll that showed 95 percent of Americans said traffic congestion, including commutes to and from work, has grown worse over the last three years. The poll also showed 92 percent of Americans said it was either very important (71 percent) or somewhat important (21 percent) for their community to have both good roads and viable alternatives to driving.
FISCAL YEAR 2004 GOALS
Annual federal appropriations for the federal transit program have increased significantly in each of the last six years under the Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA 21). Federal funding increased from just under $4.4 billion in Fiscal Year 1997 to $7.2 billion in Fiscal Year 2003, a 65 percent increase.
The stable and predictable growth in the federal investment in TEA 21 led to impressive results for transit. While service was expanded and improved, and ridership reached its highest level in 40 years, public demand for additional capital investment, new transit services, and improvements to existing systems continued to grow. This demand for additional service and capital projects comes at a time when many existing assets are nearing the end of their useful lives and need to be improved or replaced. Indeed, a 2002 American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials report estimates that $44 billion is needed annually to meet current transit capital needs for new projects and improvements to existing systems.
APTA’s recommendations for TEA 21 reauthorization have been made available to committee members and staff and they contain detailed funding and programmatic recommendations for the next six years. Most critically, APTA’s proposal urges Congress to continue to grow the federal investment in public transportation to address critical national transportation needs, and to fund the federal transit program at no less than $8.1 billion in Fiscal Year 2004.
We recognize that the Fiscal Year 2004 Budget Resolution assumes $7.3 billion in funding for public transportation in FY 2004. However, a provision in the resolution granted authority to increase funding beyond that amount if Mass Transit Account (MTA) revenues exceed expected levels. Revenues accruing to the MTA could be increased in a number of ways. These would include providing interest on the balance of the MTA, particularly if outlays from the account were scored as they are from the highway account; or if user fees were adjusted to account for inflation. Therefore, we urge the committee to make every effort to set transit funding in excess of the level assumed in the FY 2004 Budget Resolution, in order to better address transit capital investment needs.
FEDERAL INVESTMENT IN PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION
The results of TEA 21 have been profound – more Americans have access to efficient, safe, and modern transit options than ever before. Federal investment in public transportation produces tangible assets in our communities that citizens can see and use. These assets include light rail lines, buses for commuting, and transit stations that attract economic development because of convenient access to transportation options.
Investment in transit makes sense because it is in demand. Nationwide, many systems are bursting at the seams, with the highest ridership in 40 years and a huge backlog of capital improvements identified. In growing communities where transit has not been a priority in the past, citizens are demanding new services and capital projects. Public transportation supports a solid and growing economy by providing access to labor, decreasing time lost to congestion, and freeing highway and road space for the movement of goods and people. Public transportation represents an efficient use of scarce financial resources, because it helps to mitigate congestion in densely populated areas and provides a mobility option to millions of Americans. Public transportation represents an environmentally responsible transportation option because it uses less fuel and emits far less pollution per passenger than the automobile. A recent report by economists Robert Shapiro and Kevin Hassett demonstrates that if Americans used public transportation for only ten percent of their daily travel needs, the United States could significantly reduce its dependence on foreign oil.
INCREASED DEMAND
Growing demand nationwide for transit services shows the effectiveness of federal investment. In a recent 5 year period, transit ridership grew 22 percent, greater than the growth rate of highways and domestic air travel during the same time frame. In that same time period Chicago’s MTA system saw ridership increase from 419 million trips to 450 million; in Dallas, ridership on the DART system rose from 52 million to 60 million; and in LaCrosse, Wisconsin, from 713,000 to 819,000.
Support for increased transit service remains high. In February 2003, Wirthlin Worldwide Public Opinion Poll showed 81 percent of Americans support the use of public funds for the expansion and improvement of public transportation; 56 percent say the need to reduce traffic congestion has become more important over the last 5 years. The poll also stated 57 percent agree their community needs more public transportation options, including 64 percent of urban residents, 59 percent of suburban residents, 51 percent of rural residents, and 55 percent of small-town residents.
This poll demonstrates that support for public transportation has increased dramatically not only in our biggest cities, but in smaller urban communities and rural areas as well, where 40 percent of America’s rural residents have no access to public transportation, and another 28 percent have substandard access. It is estimated that rural America has 30 million non-drivers, including senior citizens, the disabled and low-income families who need transportation options. According to a survey of APTA members, bus trips in areas with populations less than 100,000 increased from 323 million to 426 million in a recent 5 year span.
Another focus of the support for transit service is in the area of security. During the September 11th attacks, hundreds of thousands of citizens in New York and Washington were able to evacuate those cities quickly and safely because of transit. As long as security threats endanger our cities, transit serves an invaluable role as a method of evacuation that will help get people out of harm’s way.
ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE
Investment in public transportation plays a key role in stimulating local economies and the national economy as a whole. Investment in transit infrastructure creates jobs. Transit-oriented development around transit stations stimulates construction, new business and housing which increases land value and property taxes. Transit service provides employers with access to workers and workers with a way to get to jobs.
Investment in transit creates jobs and significant economic growth outside of the communities in which the systems are located. Optima Bus Corporation (formerly Chance Coach), located in Wichita, Kansas, built a 125,000 square foot assembly plant in 2000 and doubled its workforce. Optima builds buses and trolleys to be used in systems around the country. The same is true for North American Bus Industries in Anniston, Alabama; Neoplan USA bus company in Lamar, CO; and MCI Buses in Pembina, ND. These and many other companies supply goods and services to the transit industry, employ workers and generate economic activity in their communities with TEA 21 resources.
Public transportation’s role in stimulating local economies is profound. According to a Cambridge Systematics Inc. study, for every 10 dollars spent on transit capital projects, 30 dollars in business sales is generated. Every 10 dollars invested in transit operations results in 32 dollars in business sales. Each $1 billion in federal transportation invested creates 47,500 jobs. As states and local governments struggle to find revenues, public transportation has provided a strong return on investment. In Dallas the taxable value of properties located near its DART system increased 25 percent faster than elsewhere in the metro area. In this area, the state of Virginia will reap $2.1 billion in tax revenues as a result of transit investment over the next 7 years.
Another benefit of public transportation to a healthy economy is providing job access and reliability for an expanding labor pool. In cities large and small, businesses and other service providers are choosing to locate or relocate in areas convenient to public transportation. Transit systems are working with local businesses to provide transit passes and tax benefits to both employees and employers. Transit continues to provide a reliable, convenient option for employees who wish to avoid crowded highways or who cannot afford to travel by car.
Indeed, public transportation plays a very specialized role in this aspect of economic growth and stability. With the help of public agencies in local communities, transit helps low income workers who cannot afford other options stay productively employed and off of welfare. A project in New Jersey provides passes and tickets to welfare recipients for work-related travel. In Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, the Pee Dee RTA coordinates with the county department of social services to run a 24 hour commuter service linking rural residents with jobs in the city. The Albuquerque transit department provides reduced rate transit service for low income workers.
Further, savings as a result of transit are significant. Atlanta’s MARTA system saved an estimated $2.2 billion over a 14-year period by providing motorists a public transportation alternative. A study by the Texas Transportation Institute concludes that a single year’s increase in automobile traffic requires 27 miles of freeway and 37 miles of principal streets in each city in America just to keep up. This is significant when considering urban rail systems can provide more capacity in a 100 foot right-of-way than a 6 lane freeway, which requires three times as much space.
ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS
Public transportation represents an effective way to improve air quality without imposing new government mandates. According to a report released last summer by economists Dr. Robert Shapiro of the Brookings Institution and Dr. Kevin Hassett of the American Enterprise Institute, public transportation generates ninety-five percent less carbon monoxide, ninety-two percent less volatile organic compounds, and about half as much carbon dioxide and other pollutants per passenger mile than individuals in private automobiles. The study also shows that public transportation already saves more than 855 million gallons of gasoline and 45 million barrels of oil a year. This is equivalent to the energy used to heat, cool, and operate one quarter of all American homes annually, or half the energy used to manufacture every computer and piece of electronic equipment in America every year.
The study also found that if one in ten Americans used public transportation regularly, U.S. reliance on foreign oil could be cut by more than 40 percent. This is nearly equivalent to the amount of oil imported from Saudi Arabia annually. It reported that even small increases in transit use would help most of the 16 major cities that currently fail to meet EPA standards for carbon monoxide emissions; and that transit is twice as fuel efficient as private vehicles for each passenger mile traveled.
PRESIDENT’S BUDGET PROPOSAL
In February, the President’s Fiscal Year 2004 budget proposal was released. It calls for a 6 percent increase in funding for the Department of Transportation, but no increase in overall investment for public transportation. Prior to unveiling his budget, the President identified his priorities for the nation in the annual State of the Union Address. These included revitalizing the nation’s economy, reducing dependence on foreign sources of energy, helping the environment by investing in hydrogen powered vehicles and applying the compassion of America to solve disadvantaged American’s problems.
Public transportation assists in reaching each of these goals. Regarding the economy, 47,500 jobs are created by every $1 billion invested in the public transportation infrastructure. $30 million in private business sales are generated for every $10 million invested in transit. Transit provides efficient access to labor and mitigates congestion so that goods may travel more freely.
With regard to reducing dependence on foreign sources of energy, public transportation reduces by millions of barrels the amount of oil that would otherwise be imported every year. In terms of the environment, public transportation produces less pollution per rider than the automobile. It reduces the amount of volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides that contribute to smog and illnesses related to polluted air such as asthma.
Public transportation is a compassionate way to address the mobility needs of millions of Americans. It provides transportation options to the disabled and those who are unable to drive. It provides an inexpensive way for lower-income workers to commute to work, allowing them to save money for their families that would otherwise be spent on driving expenses. It provides a safe way for the elderly to visit the doctor or go to the grocery store.
APTA questions the Administration’s proposal to restructure a federal transit program that has worked so well in recent years. APTA’s recommendations for the reauthorization of the federal transit program build on the success of the current program without eliminating any of the major elements of that program. We do not believe that bus replacement and facility needs can be addressed by folding the discretionary bus program into the formula and fixed guideway programs. We support retention of a distinct fixed guideway modernization program that helps improve the efficiency of systems that often operate at capacity and serve large numbers of citizens in communities that depend on public transportation.
Further, APTA opposes the Administration’s proposal to reduce the federal share of new fixed guideway transit projects from 80% to 50% because we believe it would bias decisions on transportation investments that are made at the local level. APTA believes that such decisions should be based on project merit and local transportation needs, and not on the basis of the federal share of transportation project costs. Communities that want to build rail and other fixed guideway projects already make a substantial commitment of local resources for project construction under existing law. Further, to receive federal funding for such projects, the community must demonstrate to the Federal Transit Administration that it has the local resources to operate and maintain the system once it is built. The full funding grant agreement (FFGA) process protects against the funding of projects that fail to provide good benefits to the community or do not have adequate local funding for long-term operations. Good rail and other fixed guideway systems can provide enormous benefits to a community, including a wide array of economic benefits, and they should be considered with other transportation investments in the local transportation planning process on a level playing field.
We strongly believe that growth of the federal investment in public transportation can help advance many of the nation’s goals, and that freezing federal funding for transit will erode purchasing power and increase the backlog of unmet transit capital needs. We urge the committee to fund the federal transit program in Fiscal Year 2004 at no less than $8.1 billion.
CONCLUSION
Public transportation can play a key role in meeting the goals of the Administration and Congress in providing economic development, energy dependence, transportation options for Americans who cannot afford to drive or are not able to, and preserving the environment. To do so it requires a commitment on the part of the federal government in the form of increased predictable investment.
Mr. Chairman, we look forward to working with the Committee as it advances legislation to invest in national transportation infrastructure needs.
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