Road Pork Bloats Highway Bill; Report: Elimination of Most Wasteful, Environmentally Harmful Highway Projects Would Save Billions

6/2/2004

From: Keith Ashdown of Taxpayers for Common Sense, 202-546-8500 ext. 110, or Erich Pica of Friends of the Earth, 202-222-0739

WASHINGTON, June 2 -- As lawmakers begin final debate on the federal transportation bill, a new report released today calls for elimination of the nation's most wasteful and environmentally harmful highway projects, many of which are key factors in bloating the current legislation.

Road to Ruin: The 27 Most Wasteful Road Projects in America chronicles the nation's most wasteful and environmentally harmful highway projects and ranks the ten worst. Eliminating the 27 projects would save federal taxpayers more than $24 billion. The report was released by Taxpayers for Common Sense, a leading fiscal critic of highway and transportation boondoggles, and Friends of the Earth, one of the nation's leading environmental organizations.

"At a time of ballooning deficits, it is shocking that lawmakers would attempt to shove more billion-dollar white elephants onto taxpayers," said Erich Zimmermann, research analyst at Taxpayers for Common Sense. "The bottom line is that our nation cannot afford this 'have our cake and eat it too' spending. We need to set priorities, and should start by eliminating these projects immediately."

"All these projects are bad for the environment and for local communities," said Erich Pica, director of Economic Programs at Friends of the Earth. "Our nation's transportation dollars should not go to road projects that run over communities and put the environment in the backseat."

The release of Road to Ruin coincides with reauthorization of the six-year transportation bill, which is currently being considered in Congress. The version of the bill passed by the House of Representatives includes specific earmarks for 16 of the projects in the report. "Earmarking amounts to congressional micromanagement of regional transportation needs. It takes control out of the hands of local communities and ensures the continuation of these projects even though they are unnecessary, wasteful, and have little community support," said Zimmermann.

In April, the House approved legislation to replace TEA-21, which would provide $275 billion over six years for road construction, transit projects, and related safety initiatives. The Senate approved its version of the bill in February and would provide $318 billion over six years. The White House supports a $256 billion transportation package and has threatened to veto any version of the bill that surpasses this funding level. A joint conference committee will soon consider differences between the Senate and House versions. Senate leaders named conferees last week, and House leaders are expected to name conferees in the next two weeks.

The report recommends that the $185 million earmarked in this year's transportation bill for the 27 roads mentioned in the report be eliminated. "Wasting hundreds of millions on projects that won't even reduce traffic congestion is ill-advised. It's time for the proponents of these roads to pull over and ask for directions," concluded Zimmermann.

"Each of these projects would be a poor use of taxpayer dollars, harm local communities, and negatively impact the environment. The report concludes that the brakes must be applied to these projects before another dollar is wasted," continued Pica.

In addition to eliminating these projects, the report proposes other changes to federal transportation policy that would increase accountability and efficiency, including: 1) the federal share for new or significantly expanded highway projects should be reduced to 50 percent; 2) all projects should face equally tough scrutiny before receiving federal funding; and 3) transportation agencies at every level of government should be required to provide information to the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) detailing expenditure of all federal funds for every project they oversee.

The report highlights wasteful highway projects in 21 states: Alaska, California, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, and West Virginia.

Local residents concerned about their communities and the surrounding environment also oppose these projects. Each highlighted project would negatively impact local areas and the surrounding natural environment. Some of these impacts include urban sprawl, loss of farmland, harm to local businesses, and damage to historic sites.

The 27 highways in the report were all nominated by local citizen organizations and individuals, and then researched by Taxpayers for Common Sense and Friends of the Earth. This list represents the most wasteful and environmental harmful highways in the U.S. The Top 10 was selected by ranking the roads according to costs to the taxpayer and impact on the environment.

To access the report, please go to http://www.taxpayer.net