In This Issue

	Missouri Highway Deaths Lowest since 1950
	Portland Awaits Solar and Wind Powered Light Rail Substation
	State Leaders Study Mileage Tax Option
	Viaduct Replacement within Budget, but Tunnel Costs Rise
	November Travel up 1.4 Percent vs. last year
	Lawmakers Renew Push for National Infrastructure Bank
	$70M for BART Oakland Airport Tram in Jeopardy
	Virginia to Reopen 19 Rest Stops Closed to Save Money

Missouri Highway Deaths Lowest since 1950

Missouri – 2009 marked the lowest number of fatalities on Missouri highways in almost 60 years, according to data released this week. The new numbers showed the state had 871 deaths last year, which is the lowest number since 1949, when the state had fewer than 850.

The number of highway deaths in Missouri has been declining for several years, falling from 1,232 in 2003. The 2009 data shows an approximately nine percent drop from 2008 with 960 fatalities.

A similar story ran in Utah papers where 245 fatalities occurred in 2009 versus 276 in 2008. TW

Portland Awaits Solar and Wind Powered Light Rail Substation

PORTLAND - Work on Oregon’s innovative light rail substation for the South Terminus of TriMet’s Portland Mall Light Rail Line has been underway for about a month, using salvaged materials and a unique solar and wind power design. Up to 90 percent of the power needed to operate the substation and communication buildings on site will be provided by solar panels and 22 small wind turbines.

TriMet has yet to secure funding for the alternative energy technologies, with the turbines estimated to cost about $250,000, or $11,000 per turbine. An additional $750,000 is needed for the 50 k W solar array. Once the solar panels are installed, a public plaza will display a “meter” bench showing how much energy is being generated by the on-site solar and wind technologies. The rest of the substation is funded with federal stimulus dollars, and construction will be completed by mid-February.

This project begins to communicate how different thinking can lead to new solutions to problems. Often the first iteration of technology deployment is not efficient. Nevertheless, spinoff applications inspired by people taking a chance will bring long and substantial benefit to society. TW

State Leaders Study Mileage Tax Option

LUBBOCK, TX – Transportation officials in Texas are looking at several new ways to fund road construction, including a possible mileage tax to replace the state fuel tax. Last month, the Texas Transportation Commission chose a committee to examine the mileage tax system. The lawmakers will present their findings in October.

Currently, Texans primarily pay for road improvements through the fuel tax. But aging infrastructure, rising construction costs and declining fuel tax revenues from more fuel efficient vehicles have forced lawmakers to make up for the funding shortage.

“Obviously the current system we’re using now is probably insufficient given the changes that are occurring,” said state Senator Robert Duncan, adding that he does not think a fuel tax would be fair to residents in the western part of the state. “For us out here in rural Texas, where it’s just a necessity to drive further, more miles, I think that type of system, unless there are adjustments or some sort of weighting that recognizes the issue, it would seem to be discriminatory,” Duncan said.

Viaduct Replacement within Budget, but Tunnel Costs Rise

Washington – The cost for the full deep-bored tunnel project to replace Seattle’s quake-damaged Alaskan Way Viaduct is still within the price range estimated by the state, transportation officials reported Tuesday. The cost to build the tunnel itself, however, has risen by $60 million; mainly because the most recent design adds about 640 feet to the tunnel’s alignment along the Seattle waterfront.

With about 15 percent of design work finished, the new report will be presented to the governor and Legislature, during hearings scheduled through next week. The previous estimate, with less than 5 percent of design work complete, was $1.9 billion for the tunnel itself. The new estimates still include a $400 million cushion to account for inflation and unforeseen risks.

The overall cost of the tunnel, including the north and south portals, is $3.1 billion. Transportation officials said in the new report this cost remains realistic because of the construction savings and the new south end highway between Holgate and King Streets.

November Travel up 1.4 Percent vs. last year

Highway travel in the U.S. rose by 1.4 percent in November compared to the same time a year earlier, federal transportation officials reported Wednesday. The U.S. Transportation Department said five out of the past six months have seen higher vehicle miles traveled from the previous year as the economy slowly recovers and gas prices have fallen from the record highs of 2008.

The 3.2 billion mile rise in miles traveled reflects the increase in drivers choosing to travel over Thanksgiving in 2009 after many stayed home in the previous year’s recession. The Transportation Department reports cumulative travel through November 2009 to be up .3 percent, or 7.6 billion vehicle miles, from the same period in 2008.

Lawmakers Renew Push for National Infrastructure Bank

WASHINGTON – This week at a news conference on Capitol Hill, a broad coalition of members of Congress, experts and stakeholders called on Congress and the Obama Administration to create a National Infrastructure Bank (NIB) to help generate the investment needed for infrastructure projects of regional and national importance.

"Too many of our cities have structurally deficient bridges and outdated water and sewer pipes still made of wood," said Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (CA), Co-chair, Building America's Future. "Faced with shrinking revenues and budget deficits, the National Infrastructure Bank could help finance projects that will allow cities and states to provide the high quality of life and safety our citizens deserve."

Building America's Future (www.BAFuture.org) is a bipartisan and national organization dedicated to bringing about a new era of U.S. investment in infrastructure that enhances our nation's prosperity and quality of life. Comprised of state and locally elected officials from around the nation, Building America's Future seeks to advance a new national vision for infrastructure investment that focuses on economic growth and global competitiveness, job creation and environmental sustainability.

A National Infrastructure Bank could also serve as an effective vehicle to ensure that long-term funding would be maximized and allocated to projects based on project merit, rather than politics.

$70M for BART Oakland Airport Tram in Jeopardy

The Bay Area Rapid Transit risks losing $70 million in federal stimulus funding for its planned project to connect BART to the Oakland Airport after a strongly worded letter from the Federal Transit Administration said the agency had missed a required analysis. In the Jan. 15 letter, the FTA said BART's project reports failed to take into account provisions of the Civil Rights Act that require federally funded projects not be discriminatory.

The letter warns that if BART does not complete an analysis of whether the line would adversely affect minority communities by March 5, "MTC and BART are now in danger of losing federal funding for the project, including (economic stimulus) funds."

The $492 million project to build a 3.2 mile elevated tram from Coliseum station to Oakland International Airport was contingent upon several funding sources. The loss of the federal funding could potentially doom the project, for which BART has already chosen contractors to build and operate the tram. Construction was supposed to begin this year, with completion slated for 2013. BART Board President James Fang said the letter was puzzling and distressing, because he believed that "FTA was one of our strongest partners on the Oakland Airport Connector." Fang said he was confident that BART could satisfy the FTA in time to receive the funds.

Virginia to Reopen 19 Rest Stops Closed to Save Money

ARLINGTON, Va. – Virginia's decision to reopen 19 safety rest areas and welcome centers by April 15 has been commended by the American Trucking Association (ATA) and the Virginia Trucking Association. Gov. Bob McDonnell led the Commonwealth Transportation Board in the move to reverse its 2009 decision to reduce the number state rest stops from 42 to 23.

"Closing these rest areas last year potentially decreased highway safety for both the motoring public and truck drivers alike," ATA President and CEO Bill Graves said. "As a former governor [of Kansas], I understand the difficult budget challenges that Virginia faces, but I was deeply concerned that safety rest areas were the wrong place to cut funds."

The Virginia Department of Transportation will use $3 million from its maintenance reserve fund to operate the facilities until June 30, and will identify long-term funding during revisions of budget this spring, a state spokesman said.