Office of Public Affairs
DOT 31-09
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Contact: Jill Zuckman
Tel.: (202) 366-4570
DOT Moving Quickly to Use Transportation Funding for Economic Recovery,
Transportation Secretary LaHood Says
The U.S. Department of Transportation is keeping its promise to use its
economic recovery funding to invest in the nation’s transportation system
and create jobs, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said today.
In remarks to the National League of Cities in Washington, Secretary
LaHood told the gathering of urban officials that the Department has moved
quickly to release funds to state offices and transit agencies.
“In a very short time, your cities will be humming with construction
workers, engineers, maintenance crews and many others,” Secretary LaHood
said. “You’ll see roads repaved, interchanges improved, bus and rail
systems repaired, upgraded, and expanded.
“This effort not only puts people to work -- it gets people to work in a
way that moves us towards our long-term goals of energy security and more
livable communities,” he added.
In addition to funding currently being allocated, there soon will be
additional opportunities to compete for discretionary funds for
transportation projects, he said. A team of senior officials across the
Department – the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery
(TIGER) team – is tracking every dollar spent in order to ensure
accountability and transparency, he added.
LaHood added that the new authorization bill for highway and transit
programs, soon be taken up by Congress, will help keep people employed and
transportation healthy after recovery funds are spent. He said the Obama
administration will work closely with Congress to enact a bill that will
focus on making communities more livable and sustainable. The new
authorization also must address the need to look beyond the Highway Trust
Fund and find new ways to finance surface transportation programs, such
as a National Infrastructure Bank, public-private partnerships and tolling
on newly built highways.