Surface Transportation Law Signed

On July 6, President Obama signed the transportation reauthorization bill that was recently passed by the House and Senate on June 29. The measure extends current transportation law until September 30, 2012, and establishes new law from October 1, 2012, until September 30, 2014. The new law, known as Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century (MAP-21), reauthorizes federal highway, transit, and other surface transportation programs at current funding levels with slight increases for inflation.

The new law preserves the Transportation Enhancements (TE) Program under the Surface Transportation Program but gives states greater leeway to use TE funding for other purposes. In the days leading up to final passage, rumors swirled that bicycle and pedestrian programs were eliminated from the bill. ASLA responded by urging many California-based landscape architecture firms to contact Senator Barbara Boxer (CA), the chair of the transportation negotiations, to reiterate the importance of bike/ped programs in creating jobs and economic growth for landscape architects and California communities.

Ultimately, most bike/ped programs will continue but will be significantly scaled back from current law. In particular, the TE program will continue but has been renamed "Transportation Alternatives" (TA), with the current 12 eligible activities categories consolidated into six categories. The bill eliminates the bike/ped safety and education programs, transportation museums, and the acquisition of scenic and historic easements categories. The "Scenic Beautification" category has been renamed "Vegetation Management Practices" and has been consolidated under the "Community Improvement" category. States will now have more latitude in spending TA dollars. Under the bill, states will suballocate 50 percent of their TA funds to metropolitan planning organizations and local communities to run a grant program to distribute funds for projects. States could use the remaining 50 percent for TA projects or could spend these dollars on other transportation priorities.

ASLA is pleased that under the new law the Recreational Trails Program (RTP), which is the foundation for state trails programs nationwide, will continue at its current funding level of $85 million per year. Maintaining the RTP program is a significant victory for landscape architects, with many professionals planning, designing, and maintaining these RTP projects across the country. However, the Safe Routes to School (SRTS) program has been eliminated as a stand-alone program. Instead, SRTS projects are now eligible for funding under the new TA program.

Proponents of a national Complete Streets policy will have to begin work anew, since the final law does not include a policy that would require transportation planners to consider all users when planning and designing transportation projects. Complete Streets language was originally incorporated in the Safety for Motorized and Non-Motorized Users provisions of the Senate Commerce Committee's freight title of the Senate-passed transportation bill. However, during conference negotiations the entire freight title came under fire and was removed from the final agreement.

In the past few years, ASLA and its grassroots activists have worked hard to prevent elimination of active transportation programs. As the new surface transportation law neared final passage, ASLA EVP Nancy Somerville, Hon. ASLA, issued a statement that applauded congressional efforts to pass a bipartisan long-term transportation bill, but also expressed disappointment at their scaling back active transportation programs. Currently, ASLA continues to analyze the new law and will work with practitioners to determine the effects the new law will have on the profession.

See ASLA's preliminary analysis of the MAP-21.