The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) said recently that new rulemaking procedures have been proposed to modify performance measures for assessing emissions, travel reliability and congestion.
These modified protocols aim to address concerns that had been raised in a U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) report on future U.S. transportation infrastructure trends involving increased population, environment impacts and growing freight volumes.
“The department is taking a major step to improve accountability and address the costly congestion problem that is plaguing our nation every day,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said. “Commuters and truck drivers from every state and region will be able to learn valuable information about how transportation investments are performing in delivering reliable highway travel with minimal delays and less air pollution. We are also taking a hard look at how to track progress on reducing greenhouse gas emissions from transportation, and I’m looking forward to what we hear back on this important topic.”
Federal Highway Administrator Gregory Nadeau said the proposed plan will utilize data collected from vehicles, including travel times.
“These measures will enhance a data-driven approach that will lead to better informed decisions on how and where to focus our efforts to reduce congestion,” Nadeau said. “Ultimately, the goal is to improve the system, enhance our nation’s productivity and support the economy.”
