Key Transportation Priorities for the First 100 Days of the Biden Administration

National transportation policy must use the Guiding Principles to address inequities and create a system that is sustainable for environmental quality. To do this, policies must fund transportation adequately, support multimodal spending, develop national tools to measure impacts and require their use in projection selection, accelerate transportation innovation, support sustainable freight movement, and tie federal spending to initiatives at the state and local levels that support shared mobility. Key actions are these:

Act on Crucial Transportation Priorities in the First 100 Days

1. Rejoin the Paris Climate Accords and commit to climate change mitigations that go beyond previous US commitments.
2. Reverse regulatory rollbacks of the greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) fuel economy standard and make the standard more stringent.
3. Provide immediate funding for transit to survive the budget crisis created by COVID.
4. Champion an infrastructure bill that builds a resilient, sustainable, multimodal transportation system that honors environmental justice principles and prioritizes active transportation and shared use of assets.

Fund Transportation Adequately to Have a Multimodal Transportation System That Works for All

1. Move to a funding mechanism, such as a carbon tax, cap-and-trade program, or a Vehicle Miles Traveled tax, that incentivizes sustainability and supports economic justice.
2. Increase the federal gas tax for the first time since the early 90s and index it to inflation as a stopgap measure to increase revenues for multimodal transportation until a more efficient system is implemented.
3. Integrate non-emergency transportation spending programs across multiple agencies to reduce costs and maximize the benefits of the programs.

Support Sustainable Multimodal Spending 

1. Dedicate at least one-half of federal transportation funds for transit, including operating expenses, transit innovation, and active transportation infrastructure.
2. Enact a “Fix it” policy for road spending that places a priority on maintenance and that enables active transportation, including bike lanes and sidewalks.
3. Establish a process to streamline and expedite transit capital projects.
4. Fund mobility hub infrastructure to enhance multimodal options.
5. Support electric vehicle (EV) charging and hydrogen infrastructure buildout, both for fleets and individual drivers.
6. Expand the size and number of Federal EV subsidies for individuals and allow them for used EV vehicles.

Develop National Tools to Measure What Matters and Require Their Use in Project Selection and Ongoing Performance

1. Develop tools to forecast and measure GHG from transportation for all federal transportation spending and use them to reduce GHG in transportation.
2. Develop measures for multimodal access to jobs and essential services and require their use in project selection to optimize access for all economic groups.
3. Redesign engineering and other standards to provide more options for safe multimodal travel. One size does not fit all.

Accelerate National Support for Transportation System Innovation

1. Fund transportation system innovation across a variety of sectors, including nonprofit organizations, universities, and national labs, with flexible funds and parameters for programs that can be implemented quickly and with attention to equitable transportation and minority businesses and nonprofit enterprises.
2. Use challenges and prizes to motivate private sector and governmental innovation, such as the DARPA challenge for autonomous vehicles (AVs) and the Smart City Challenge.
3. Prioritize support for AV pilots that are part of shared zero-emission vehicle fleets deployed as a public shared mobility option that supplements transit and does not increase pollution and health inequities.
4. Accelerate technology solutions that can scale sustainably, including hydrogen from renewable sources and improved battery storage.

Develop Freight and Delivery Policies that Promote Sustainability and Equity

1. Make environmental justice a central consideration in siting freight facilities and delivery routes.
2. Use a multimodal approach for freight delivery, especially for the last mile, and create infrastructure that allows for active transportation in neighborhoods.
3. Develop employment training opportunities for freight facilities and deliveries.
4. Focus innovation in freight transportation on community livability.

Tie Federal Funding to State and Local Initiatives That Support Multimodal Shared Use Transportation 

1. Increase funding for policies that encourage increased density and mixed-income housing near rail transit stations and mobility hubs.
2. Support policies that rationalize parking through measures such as unbundling parking and housing, eliminating minimum parking requirements, charging market rates for city parking facilities, and prioritizing use for shared rides in carpools and vanpools.
3. Incentivize Transportation Demand Management for employers, including walk/transit/bike commutes.
4. Fund supportive public amenities, ranging from long-term bike rentals for employees who pledged to commute by bike, to a campus electric bikeshare program, to a network of complementary shuttles available to employees and visitors.

Read SUMC’s Guiding Principles