U.S. Department of Transportation
Federal Highway Administration
1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE
Washington, DC 20590
202-366-4000
Briefing Room
Subscribe to FHWA Press Releases
Federal Highway Administrator Mary Peters Powerpoint Presentation, "The Perfect Storm" - NSSGA_with_notes.ppt. Notes accompany this presentation. (Slide 1) "The Perfect Storm" National Stone, Sand and Gravel Association Mary Peters, Administrator
U.S. Department of Transportation Over the years, many of our people at FHWA have had the pleasure of working with NSSGA on aggregate-related initiatives. It has truly been a win-win relationship. We value our partnership with NSSGA and certainly look forward to working with you on issues of mutual interest in the year to come. (Slide 2) "The Perfect Storm" National Stone, Sand and Gravel Association Mary Peters, Administrator
U.S. Department of Transportation Notes: We've had some very promising news recently about the economy – record 8.2 percent growth in the third quarter and more than a quarter of a million new jobs added since last summer. The President's message in his State of the Union address: Our economy is on the rebound. We want to keep on track for a more prosperous future. Transportation is a large part of the economy. The transportation sector accounts for more than 11.7 million jobs and contributes over $1 trillion annually to the U.S. economy, generating more than 10 percent of the Gross Domestic Product. But the progress that Bush Administration has been making to revitalize the economy and put Americans back to work could be seriously hampered unless we, in transportation, do our jobs. You see, there's a storm brewing, a "Perfect Storm" that has its eye set on our transportation system. A Perfect Storm is a tempest that may happen only once in a century. I want you to see what I'm talking about. (Slide 3)
Notes: Three killer storms came together in the Atlantic, one of them a hurricane, in October of 1991. Waves were 100 feet high; winds were 120 miles per hour. Out of tragedy for the six-man crew of a commercial fishing boat came a thrilling book in 1997 and a movie starring George Clooney in 2000. The Perfect Storm of Transportation has been developing for a hundred years. The transportation storm is marked by the convergence of at least three major storm systems, just as in the book. All of these converging systems have serious implications for the growth of congestion and our future mobility. (Slide 4)
Notes: CONVERGING FORCES We currently spend more than $130 billion each year to preserve and improve our highways and even more if you count the value of time lost while sitting in traffic. Key factors driving this high cost are -- An aging infrastructure operating under ever increasing usage. (Slide 5)
Notes: Congestion is nearly unbearable in many metro areas. Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT) may double in the next 20 years . . . lane miles are nearly static.
(Slide 6)
Notes: Freight tonnage may nearly double by 2020. Similar to the way the storm systems converged into the Perfect Storm, the three forces – infrastructure, congestion, and freight -- are converging on a surface transportation system that is already overloaded with traffic and that has a huge amount of aging infrastructure in need of replacement. Transportation professionals alone cannot bail us out. To withstand this coming "storm", we need to get the public, business groups, private firms, universities, and state and local elected officials -- NSSGA -- engaged in confronting these looming storm systems, and understanding the tradeoffs necessary to stay afloat. (Slide 7) Notes: Through the transportation planning process, we must engage the public and forge a consensus. We'll need to grapple with some big questions:
It will not be easy to engage the public and develop the answers to these questions. But it must be done. (Slide 8)
Notes: Let's look at aggregates. As you know, NSSGA members produce more than 90 percent of the crushed stone and 70 percent of the sand and gravel consumed annually in the United States. There are 10,000 construction aggregate operations nationwide and your industry directly and indirectly supports more than 200,000 jobs. FHWA has a long history of cooperation with NSSGA. Looking forward, the service and structural life of many of our pavements is being used up faster than we anticipated, due to volume and traffic loads. It seemed right to fix roads in the worst condition first. A twenty-year life seemed reasonable. After all, we thought we could simply come back, repair and rebuild. (Slide 9)
Notes: Although it was never clearly stated, what we were doing on highways was: Go in . . . Stay in. . . and Keep Going Back. Today's traffic has taught us to respond differently. While we managed to keep our heads above water during the past 20 years, we have to be much more strategic and proactive if we are going to thrive in the future. We have to build pavements that are designed to last 40 years or more. We must perform pavement preservation work at the right time, basing decisions on long-range life cycle costs. We need to act on our vision for where we want to be in 20 years. When we do a better job, we can proclaim a new slogan: Get In . . . Get Out . . . and Stay Out! (Slide 10) SAFETEA
Notes: SAFETEA IS A BLUEPRINT Where do we want to be in 20 years -- in the midst of an endless storm or coming out of it? The business community must be a major contributor . . . and the public sector needs a champion. Secretary Mineta is our champion at U.S. DOT. Under his leadership, DOT is building on the successes of ISTEA and TEA-21. We have placed our thinking on the table. It's our proposed bill, "The Safe, Accountable, Flexible and Efficient Transportation Equity Act for 2003" (SAFETEA). As the Secretary has said, "The reauthorization proposal is more than a simple spending plan -- it is a blueprint for the future that dramatically increases highway safety funding and will help grow the nation's economy without costly new taxes." (Slide 11) SAFETEA
Notes: SAFETEA meets the "Transportation Perfect Storm" head-on at several fronts, and certainly multiple approaches are imperative.
(Slide 12) SAFETEA
Notes: SAFETEA – KEY POINTS Let me explain some key aspects of our proposal.
(Slide 13) SAFETEA
Notes:
(Slide 14) Ongoing Efforts
Notes: HIGHWAYS FOR LIFE
(Slide 15) Ongoing Efforts
Notes:
(Slide 16) Ongoing Efforts
Notes:
(Slide 17) Ongoing Efforts
Notes: ONGOING EFFORTS Research
(Slide 18) Ongoing Efforts
Notes: The real benefits of investing in RT&E ultimately depend on successful applications. Work zones -- reducing delays, improving safety for both highway users and for road construction workers. In 2001, 1,079 people were killed in work zone-related crashes. Four out of five of them were motorists. Accelerated Construction Technology - this cooperative program is designed to reduce construction time while enhancing quality and safety. National traffic incident management organization -- goal is to reduce the time required to detect, respond to, and clear traffic incidents. Deployment of 511 -- A 30-second slot on the radio just doesn't do it.
Regional transportation operations coordination -- Encouraging cooperation among transportation system operators and public safety agencies at all levels of government. (Slide 19) ![]() Notes: URGENT NEED TO ACT
(Slide 20) 7 Biggest Cost Items:
Notes: We need to analyze our needs for our biggest cost items: pavement, bridges, major projects, corridor projects, interchanges, widening, new construction. But we can avert our crisis. IF we can set aside old practices that are no longer effective and do some serious preparation for the future, we can stay afloat. Our Highways for LIFE proposal – making the best use of innovation -- will be very important as we move forward. (Slide 21) Building Blocks
Notes: The broader plan is coming together. FHWA's approach is to promote Transportation Asset Management to our state partners and others in the transportation community. The building blocks are: Knowing full impact of every decision made in managing the system. Planning to have the necessary resources in place for needs 20, 30 or even 50 years into the future. Collecting the right data to be able to really understand the big picture and its estimated needs. Using long-term costs and return on investment as criteria for programming improvements, repairs, and replacements. Focusing on the NHS. Preparing the groundwork so that future reauthorizations – 2010 and beyond – keep us going in the right direction. (Slide 22) "CHARGE" In order to deal with the PRESENT and provide for the FUTURE, we must turn the page of history and do some heavy lifting. Notes: CLOSE We can face the Perfect Storm and keep America moving (not sinking). I urge you to think beyond the day-to-day, to work on ways your company, your Association, our industry can improve the infrastructure, reduce congestion and keep freight moving. The public and private sectors must be partners. We are on the same team. We have to do better because America is counting on us. -end-
|