US report recommends transport funding should be tied to cutting GHG emissions
Tue 11 August 2009
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A new report published in the United States by consultants Booz Allen Hamilton recommends that policy makers should consider funding local and regional transport projects according to the host localities' success in meeting greenhouse gas reduction goals.
This innovative approach would only cost a fraction of the federal government’s traditional annual investment in transport, and would put the 2050 goal of an 80% cut in GHG emissions within reach say the report's authors.
In the United States, transport is responsible for about a third of the nation’s total greenhouse gas emissions and the largest single contributor to the problem—responsible for more than half of these emissions—is surface transport including cars, trucks, and buses, in the 100 largest U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs).
The authors say that MSAs wanting to take steps to reduce GHG emissionsare challenged by insufficient funding as well as legal and policy barriers, often due to fragmented local leadership from rail, bus, highway, and port agencies.
They propose that their programme would be administered by a federal agency such as the U.S. Department of Transportation. It would provide incentives in the form of funding based on MSA performance in achieving GHG emissions reduction, and on grants for investing in GHG-reducing transportation policies—the greater the reductions, the greater the funding. MSAs could use the grants to develop emissions reduction strategies and implement the infrastructure needed for regional planning and reporting capabilities. The program would then shift from these grants to a more performance-based orientation as a region’s projects start achieving measurable GHG reductions.
Unlike previous proposals, this program would not mandate a specific approach to GHG reductions; MSAs could adopt the most efficient method for their region, city, or county. The authors say that this would not only encourage innovation, but also align with the development needs and policies of each regional and local community.
However, for Booz Allen’s program to be successful there would need to be increased cooperation among the federal government, municipal jurisdictions, and local agencies.
Booz Allen's report is entitled: "Miles to Go before They’re Green: Reducing Surface Transportation Greenhouse Gas Emissions through a Regional Performance-Based Framework."
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