I don't think that is an appropriate congressional role.

Senators Dodd, Menendez, Mikulski, and I introduced The Public Transportation Safety Program Act that will require the Transportation Secretary to establish and implement a comprehensive Public Transportation Safety program.

I am committed to working with my congressional colleagues, the Federal Transit Administration and the leadership at the Washington Metropolitan Transit Authority to make safety an operational priority at Metro.

We learned from this February's snowstorms that the Federal Government in fact cannot function without Metro.

What does it take to have labor and management meet on a regular basis, to have regular communication of things of mutual concern?

Well, it seems to be that there needs to be a mechanism of communication between labor and management.

I think this is a very good guidance.

This is a national issue, and it is a mandate.

So do you have thoughts or recommendations you would like to make to us?

You cannot have an infrastructure that hasn't been properly reinvested and parts of it maintained properly.

When you have moving equipment that people ride on, you have to maintain it.

I think that was an excellent answer. I appreciate that very much.

He has been an incredibly valuable member of the Committee.

I want to really thank you for your extraordinary leadership on the subject. You have been tenacious in keeping us focused on dealing with these pollutants, and I thank you.

There has been no stronger voice in the United States Congress on this issue than Senator Mikulski.

The Senate recently passed the new Metro compact, further advancing the final steps of authorizing a 10-year $1.5 billion authorization for Metro with a dedicated funding system.

I worry about the safety of Metro today. It needs maintenance funds. It needs attention.

The first priority needs to be to take care of the existing infrastructure of the current system.