Department of Transportation News

The Daily Signal reports on Department of Transportation news with analysis and commentary on infrastructure spending, highway policy, airline regulations, electric vehicle mandates, and the federal government’s role in transportation and mobility across America.
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  • opinion

    Senate Hearing: Four Surface Transportation Policies Worth Knowing About
    The latest bailout of the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) expires at the end of May, so the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee called a hearing to discuss the reauthorization of the federal highway and transit programs funded through the trust fund. Conspicuously absent from the discussion were calls to eliminate wasteful spending in reliable…
    Emily Goff
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  • news

    Audit: Va. Department of Transportation Squandered Millions on Lousy Contractor
    RICHMOND, Va. — A confidential audit found that the Virginia Department of Transportation wasted millions of tax dollars by failing to fine a nonperforming contractor. The Office of the State Inspector General concluded “at least $3 million” was “wasted” by VDOT management for not holding Serco Inc. accountable for allegedly incomplete or undone work. Serco…
    Kenric Ward
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  • opinion

    Spending Bill: House Caves to Senate on Transportation Funding
    In last minute, high pressure negotiations over spending bills on Capitol Hill, the House often caves to the Senate’s higher, irresponsible levels of spending. On Tuesday, they did it again. This time, they caved with the omnibus spending bill for fiscal year 2015 spending. Higher spending levels emerged on a variety of programs that merit…
    Emily Goff
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  • news

    Which City Has the Freest Transportation Market? This Map Ranks the Best and Worst
    Is your city transportation-friendly? A new interactive scorecard, created by the R Street Institute, grades 50 cities on their regulatory openness toward car services. The report seeks to identify whether cities encourage competition in the transportation market. Andrew Moylan, senior fellow at the R Street Institute, said the scorecard provides a snapshot of the current regulatory…
    Alex Anderson
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  • opinion

    States Already Have Transportation Funding Independence
    Campaigning this week for more federal transportation spending, President Obama said, “There’s something called the Highway Trust Fund [HTF]—I suspect this crew is familiar with it. It helps states support transportation projects. If Congress fails to fund it, it runs out of money.” Indeed, the House just passed a $10.8 billion bailout of the HTF…
    Emily Goff
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  • opinion

    Here’s a Crazy Idea: What About Reforming Transportation Spending Instead of Hiking Taxes?
    Americans know the drill. When Congress faces a gap between its spending wants and available money, it is quick to ask for more money, instead of fixing the spending side of the budget ledger. This time it’s Senate Finance Committee chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., who has proposed a rag tag group of revenue provisions, including…
    Emily Goff
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