Jim Inhofe: “as we go through section by section, we talked about congestion, but we neglected to elaborate because this is one of…”

“as we go through section by section, we talked about congestion, but we neglected to elaborate because this is one of the more serious problems we have now. According to the Department of Transportation, time spent in congestion increased from 31.7 percent in 1992 to 33.1 percent in 2000. Based on this rate, a typical rush hour in an urbanized area is 5.3 hours a day. The problem is not simply in urban areas. Cities with populations less than 500,000 have experienced the greatest growth in travel delays, according to the DOT. Very often we do not talk enough about the cost. Right now we are sensitive to the cost of fuel. Yet we can see traffic stopped, with engines idling. This is another factor that has to be entered into the equation. Increase in capital investment is one way to address congestion. We must also consider ways to better manage existing systems. This bill proposes a national goal of real-time traffic information available for the entire Nation. This goal, while ambitious, is important because we need to reorient our thinking to recognize the importance of allowing users of the system to utilize the system more efficiently, specifically by providing travelers with usable information that will enable them to select the right travel alternative plans. The biggest and fasting growing cause of congestion in our urban centers is bottlenecks around port and intermodal facilities.…”