Wednesday, February 15, 2012
 
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Illinois would lose $900 million for highways in federal transportation bill, state warns

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[February 15, 2012]  CHICAGO (AP) -- Illinois stands to lose $900 million in federal funds for highways and Chicago's transit system could be jeopardized by a Republican-led transportation bill expected to be voted on in the U.S. House this week, state and federal officials warned on Tuesday.

HardwareMost troubling, they said, is that mass transit would no longer get steady funding from a portion of the federal gasoline tax, forcing transit agencies to compete for general funds with other programs and making them more vulnerable to cuts, said Illinois Transportation Secretary Ann Schneider.

The proposed shift "puts transit in a very difficult position," she said.

Schneider joined federal transportation officials at an event in Chicago on Tuesday to drum up the interest of Midwest-based railroad manufacturers and suppliers in helping build high-speed rail and other projects. The officials say the bill in Congress could make their sales pitch tougher by raising doubts about once-steady streams of funding necessary for infrastructure projects that take years to complete and have high price tags.

"You have to have predictability" in funding, explained Joseph Szabo, head of the Federal Railroad Administration.

In the House transportation bill, Republicans are proposing spending about $260 billion over nearly five years. It eliminates the guarantee of a portion of federal gasoline and diesel tax revenues for transit, a funding stream that cash-strapped transit agencies in cities such as Chicago and New York have relied on for about 30 years. Instead, transit agencies would have to compete regularly against other programs in the scramble for funds.

House Republicans argue that it is necessary because reductions in driving due to the economy as well as more fuel-efficient vehicles have lowered tax revenues.

The bill also eliminates locally popular federal programs that help underwrite bike lanes and pedestrian safety projects, including the Safe Routes to School program, to concentrate funding on highways. And it includes a reduction in funding for Amtrak totaling $308 million over two years.

"The House bill takes us back to the dark ages," Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told reporters in Washington on Monday.

Schneider did not name specific projects that might be under threat in Illinois, but she outlined her concerns in a Feb. 3 letter to the state's congressional delegation.

"This bill reduces resources, eliminates programs crucial to a functioning multimodal transportation system in Illinois and relies on unknown, unproven revenue sources," she wrote.

The letter included an analysis of the bill that found it would create a yearly shortfall of $137 million in federal highway funds -- $900 million over the life of the bill -- and included no investment for high-speed rail, a key area for Illinois as it seeks to open a high-speed rail corridor from Chicago to St. Louis by 2014.

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Still, events such as the one Tuesday in Chicago show the state is pushing ahead with that and other rail projects. Schneider said Illinois was looking to buy 88 double-decker rail cars for passenger service on routes through Illinois and into Michigan and Missouri.

"The governor (Pat Quinn) is very much committed to the Chicago-to-St. Louis corridor being a premier high-speed rail corridor," she said.

In Chicago, the House bill has come under fire from Republicans and Democrats alike because their constituents rely heavily on the city's public transit system, the nation's second-biggest.

Statewide, transportation officials are deeply concerned about the bill because Chicago and other parts of Illinois are a major hub for the nation's highways and railways. Delays linked to aging infrastructure and congestion there can ripple throughout the nation's 140,000-mile freight and passenger rail system.

LaHood's deputy, John Pocari, was among those in Chicago on Tuesday to speak to around 250 manufacturers and suppliers about getting involved in rail projects, including bids for nearly $800 million in next-generation train orders for high-speed rail and other intercity passenger service.

Pocari pointed to a rival funding plan that President Barack Obama proposed Monday to spend nearly half a trillion dollars over six years on transportation infrastructure, including funds for investment in high-speed and other passenger rail service, which Pocari called "a very significant step forward." Obama's proposal, however, is grander than anything Congress is likely to go along with.

Szabo said the proposal is the kind of reassurance investors need.

"That's critically important to the 250 people in that room next door," he said referring to the companies they were courting. "... Before they can make an investment in a plant and equipment, they need to know that the orders are going to be there reliably over the long term so they can recoup their investment."

[Associated Press; By JASON KEYSER]

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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