Your responses to our urgent “Call for Action” to contact your legislators in Washington DC helped save Transportation Enhancements (TE) as part of the $789 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) passed by Congress on Friday evening 2/13/09. California’s legislators reported an outpouring of telephone calls from bicyclists urging that the Economic Stimulus package address our access and safety. EBBC members joined with the League of American Bicyclists in successfully promoting that 3% of highway funds go toward enhancing bicycling and walking (less than the 4.5% allotted in the House but above the 0% allotted by the Senate).
Of the highway funds, most will be allocated locally to Local Streets & Roads rehabilitation projects. EBBC has been busy urging local public works departments to prioritize roadway rehab on routes that are either in the Regional or Countywide Bicycle Plans.
MTC will require that the Routine Accommodations policy apply to the Economic Stimulus project proposals for rehabilitation. EBBC wants every road to be a good road for bicyclists. This will be the first time that the checklist will be applied to projects since the adoption of the policy in 2006. Not only does the hard-fought-for Routine Accommodations policy emphasize the need to address bicycle and pedestrian safety in every transportation project, but is it also makes the review of transportation spending much more transparent. Please bookmark the above site to review projects in your county.
ARRA Allocations for Surface Transportation
investments.
As well, the package awarded $9.3 billion for investments in rail transportation, including Amtrak, High Speed and Intercity
Rail.
And finally, the commuter transit employee fringe benefit increased from $110/month to $200/month putting the transit benefit on par with that currently allowed for automobile parking.