Dear DOT Colleagues:

I am pleased to present the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) fiscal year 2004 Performance Plan.

Our top priorities at DOT are to keep the traveling public safe and secure, increase their mobility, and have our transportation system contribute to the nation’s economic growth. We have an enviable transportation safety record in the United States; nevertheless, we must constantly seek ways to improve upon that record. Transportation is vital to our national well being, whether measured as economic growth, international competitiveness, or quality of life. However, congestion and delays in transportation burden businesses and individuals with inefficiency and higher costs. We have to continue to find ways to lighten that load.

President Bush and I take pride in what the U.S. Department of Transportation has accomplished over the past fiscal year and what we plan to achieve in the months and years ahead. DOT’s fiscal year 2004 Performance Plan contains aggressive goals to address our key transportation priorities: increase transportation safety; enhance mobility for all Americans; support the Nation’s economic growth; protect the Nation’s environment, and support homeland and national security. I also remain committed to fulfilling the President’s management agenda.

DOT’s Strategic Plan sets the primary goals in this plan, which focuses on broad outcomes. Behind each of these outcomes, the DOT operating administrations have developed detailed and output-oriented performance goals and tie those goals to accountability for performance. The result: performance goals that match Departmental priorities – especially in resource decisions – and clear lines of accountability for meeting those performance goals.

DOT is making progress towards meeting its goals. In 2002, the Department met 60 percent of its performance measures, an improvement from 2001. We are committed to improving this level of performance, and to do so, we must constantly search for ways to improve our results.

I look forward to working with you to meet that challenge in the year ahead.

Norman Y. Mineta
Secretary of Transportation