[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 29 (Tuesday, March 17, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2142-S2143]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




            INTERMODAL SURFACE TRANSPORTATION EFFICIENCY ACT

   Mr. LAUTENBERG. Mr. President, last week, the Senate 
overwhelmingly passed S. 1173, the ISTEA II bill. I supported that bill 
because, while it does not provide for all of New Jersey's highway and 
transit needs, it is indeed a better, more balanced bill than the one 
that was originally presented by the Environment and Public Works 
Committee early last September. Since September, I have managed to 
secure an additional $120 million in highway funds each year for New 
Jersey, which brings us near to where we need to be. In addition, the 
Senate gave strong support to the mass transit title of the bill, which 
continues the federal government's solid commitment to our nation's 
subways, buses and commuter rail projects. Mass transit was helped by 
an additional $5 billion that was provided over the life of the bill. I 
was pleased to join with Senators D'Amato, Sarbanes, Moynihan and 
Domenici in announcing this agreement, balancing out the funds 
allocated to both highways and mass transit.
  During these past few months, I have worked to ensure that federal 
transportation funding allocated to New Jersey would be enough to meet 
our state's tremendous infrastructure needs. The original highway title 
provided adequate funds to most of the United States, but not to all. 
It simply was not balanced. In short, the bill did not recognize the 
special needs of high density, high traffic states. Even with an extra 
$20 million in bridge discretionary funds that the Committee agreed to 
provide to my state of New Jersey, my state's funding levels would have 
actually been lower in 1998 than in 1997 despite a 20 percent growth in 
the overall program. This was unacceptable and I was determined to 
change that bill.
  New Jersey is the most densely populated state in the nation, and our 
roads carry more traffic per lane mile than any state in the country. 
We are a true corridor state. Ten percent of the nation's total freight 
passes through New Jersey. These conditions create burdens that have an 
adverse impact on the state's transportation infrastructure, 
environment, and economic productivity.
  That's why, Mr. President, I am pleased that the Senate adopted the 
High Density Transportation Program which provides funds to states 
which share these same problems and had not done well in the 
apportionment formulas used in the underlying bill.
  Mr. President, as we enter the 21st century, with an increasingly 
global marketplace, one of our most important functions will be to 
ensure the existence of a seamless transportation system which can 
carry large volumes of people and goods. But, for now, severe system 
failures exist in densely populated, urban areas where high volumes of 
traffic clog the roads and high repair costs impede routine 
maintenance, not to mention traffic flow enhancement. Roads in these 
high density States provide invaluable support to the Nation's economy 
by carrying high value goods and service-providers along essential 
trade corridors which connect nationally significant ports and economic 
sectors to the rest of the country. However, the intensity of traffic 
causes highways in these States to deteriorate rapidly. As a result, 
crucial portions of the interstate highway system linking all of us are 
in desperate need of repair. Moreover, costs are extraordinarily high 
for highway repair and maintenance in these high density States, 
especially in urban areas. The High Density Transportation Program will 
address these problems by providing $360 million a year for grants to 
States that meet specific population density, heavy traffic, and high 
urbanization criteria. Under this program, eligible States, like New 
Jersey, are guaranteed $36 million a year, but they can qualify for 
even more. These funds may be used for highway and transit projects.

  Mr. President, the High Density program rounds out New Jersey's 
funding. Under ISTEA II, New Jersey will receive a hefty increase each 
year in highway and transit funds over the funding levels in ISTEA I. 
More specifically, this means ISTEA II will provide $1.05 billion each 
year for New Jersey's roads, bridges, and mass transit systems. This 
figure includes an average of $660 million in highway formula funds and 
an estimated $390 million in mass transit formula funds for New Jersey. 
By comparison, the bill as introduced last September would have only 
provided New Jersey with an average of $532 million for highways and 
$345 million for transit. I have fought hard to improve New Jersey's 
funding levels, and apparently my efforts paid off.
  The Senate also took a strong stand against drunk driving in this 
bill. Alcohol is a dominant cause in 41 percent of highway deaths. 
However, because the Senate adopted my amendment to establish a 
national drunk driving limit of .08 percent blood alcohol content, I am 
confident that this grim statistic and the highway death rate in 
general will improve. Senator DeWine and I fought hard to get this 
amendment passed, and it did, by a 62-32 vote. This amendment is 
estimated to save 500 to 600 lives each year. I also worked with 
Senator DeWine and Senator Warner to develop a provision that the 
Senate adopted that toughens drunk driving penalties for repeat 
offenders. And, I was a lead co-sponsor on another important anti-drunk 
driving measure to outlaw open containers of alcohol in moving vehicles 
nationwide. Alcohol has no place on our roads and this bill takes a 
strong stand against drunk driving.
  Mr. President, I was also pleased to see the Senate adopt another 
amendment I developed to make ``ports of entry'' eligible for the 
planning and infrastructure funding authorized for this new trade 
corridor program. To qualify for funding, a port would have to show 
that there had been a significant increase in the transportation of 
cargo by rail and motor carrier through that facility since the 
enactment of NAFTA.
  The bill also continues our commitment to technology that will 
increase efficiency and improve safety within our transportation 
system, by including a comprehensive Intelligent Transportation Systems 
program, authorized at $1.8 billion over six years, that I helped 
author with the managers of the bill. Intelligent Transportation 
Systems hold the promise of increasing capacity and promoting safety 
through innovative technologies. A recently released report estimated 
that ITS projects and programs generate a benefit/cost ratio of more 
than 8:1 for the Nation's 75 largest metropolitan areas. Intelligent 
Transportation Systems provide cost-effective ways to achieve the 
Nation's transportation goals of mobility, efficiency, national and 
international productivity, safety and environmental protection. The 
bill incorporates ITS into mainstream transportation planning and 
construction process for all modes at the local, state and federal 
levels. It also integrates ITS technologies in the Nation's 
infrastructure, resulting in coordinated ITS systems that benefit the 
safe and efficient movement of both passengers and freight in 
localities, states, regions and corridors. I am pleased that the Senate 
adopted a strong, comprehensive program.
  Mr. President, the first ISTEA emphasized the importance of 
intermodalism in reducing congestion and improving mobility. One way 
intermodalism will be enhanced in this bill is through an amendment 
adopted by the Senate which I strongly supported. This amendment will 
boost the existing $18 million annual Ferry Program to $50 million for 
ferry operations around the country.
  Another goal of ISTEA I was the reduction of air pollution and 
traffic congestion. Protecting the environment remains an important 
element of federal surface transportation programs under ISTEA II as 
well. Thus this bill increases the Congestion Mitigation and Air 
Quality Program funding levels

[[Page S2143]]

and maintains the enhancements program. This bill also includes an 
amendment that I authored to establish a ``Transportation and 
Environment Cooperative Research Program,'' funded at $5 million a 
year, that will study the relationship between highway density and 
ecosystem integrity, including an analysis of the habitat-level impacts 
of highway density on the overall health of ecosystems.
  I am also pleased that the Senate stated its support for the 
continuation of a provision that I authored in the original ISTEA that 
froze longer combination vehicle operations on routes as of 1991. 
Longer combination vehicles (LCVs) can be longer than a 737 jetliner 
and can weigh up to 164 tons. Multi-trailer trucks are involved in more 
serious crashes than single-unit trucks or small tractor-trailer 
combinations. Although big rig trucks make up only 3 percent of all 
regulated vehicles, they are involved in 21 percent of all fatal multi-
vehicle crashes. The least we can do is maintain the current system and 
not let LCVs branch out onto roads they aren't already on now.
  Mr. President, I am pleased to support this bill. I will continue to 
work to ensure that New Jersey is treated fairly in the final bill that 
will be signed by the President.

                          ____________________