Skip to Content
Streetsblog USA home
Streetsblog USA home
Log In
422093580_050ae3f4c9.jpgRep. Jim Oberstar at the 2007 National Bike Summit. Photo by Bike Portland via Flickr.

The details of Rep. Jim Oberstar's plans for the next federal transportation bill are starting to come into focus. Last Friday, The Infrastructurist ran an item about a document on the subject that has made its way into the public eye:

Oberstar has recently been circulating a “two-page handwritten outline” around the Hill, according to the BNA’s Daily Report for Executives, which obtained a copy of the document. They report the following tidbits:

> The outline calls for “transit equity.” Right now the feds pay 80 percent of highway projects and 50 percent of transit projects. That would change.

> It would create DOT agencies focused on a “national strategic plan” and on “mega-projects.”

> “DOT’s 108 programs [will be consolidated] into four “major formula programs”: critical asset preservation, highway safety improvement, surface transportation program, and congestion mitigationand air quality improvement.”

> The document seems to call for more transparency with transportation data.

Leaves you wanting more, doesn't it?

Stay in touch

Sign up for our free newsletter

More from Streetsblog USA

Climate Change Is Making Waiting For Transit Worse — And It’s Hurting Ridership

Transit isn't only a key solution to confronting climate change; it's also one of its victims.

March 12, 2025

Wednesday’s Headlines Are About Elon-ed Out

While President Trump tries to pump up Tesla stock prices, Elon Musk wants to privatize Amtrak.

March 12, 2025

How Highways Rend Our Social Fabric — and the Challenge of Mending It

Roads are supposed to connect us. So why do so many highways tear our social networks apart?

March 11, 2025

Tuesday’s Headlines Walk the Line

Pedestrian deaths were trending slightly downward at the midway point of last year, but the trend over the past decade is still terrifying.

March 11, 2025

Massachusetts Lawmakers Are Still Spending Millions to Subsidize Elon Musk’s Car Company

In the three months between Election Day and February 5th (the last date for which data is currently available), Massachusetts taxpayers have sent $8.6 million in direct payments to buyers at Tesla dealerships.

March 10, 2025
See all posts