U.S. In New Arms Race for Global Economic Superiority, ARTBA CEO Tells Logistics
Industry Conference Participants
 “Critical Commerce Corridors” Goods Movement Plan
Key Part of New U.S. Transportation Vision

Contact:
Jeff Solsby ARTBA 202-289-4434		Print this page

Washington, D.C. [June 27, 2008]—The U.S. is in a tough competition for global economic supremacy as Russia, China, India and the European Union invest in massive, long-term transportation infrastructure improvements and add new capacity.  To remain competitive, the U.S. needs to “reform, refocus, restructure and refinance” its federal surface transportation programs and create a federally-led “Critical Commerce Corridors” (3C) goods movement program to handle the expected doubling of truck traffic over the next 25 years.

Those were the key messages American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) President  & CEO Pete Ruane offered at a June 26 logistics industry panel discussion during the SMC3 Summer Conference in Boston, Mass.  The theme for the event was “The New Supply Chain: Global Trends, Technology & Infrastructure.”

“America is in a new arms race for global economic superiority,” said Ruane.  “And the weapon is, which country has the most efficient transportation network.”

Ruane pointed to the Russian government’s recent announcement that it planned to invest $570 billion between now and 2015 to build new highways, railways and air runways and add massive new capacity to Russian water ports.  He also noted China’s plans to build 53,000 miles of Interstate quality highways by 2020.  India expects to add 25,000 miles and the European Union plans to add more than 10,000 new miles of road and rail capacity over the same period.  By comparison, current trends suggest the U.S. will add just 1,100 Interstate miles.

To meet pressing national transportation challenges, Ruane outlined a policy blueprint developed by ARTBA and already distributed to Congress for consideration as part of the 2009 surface transportation authorization bill.  It contains the two separate, yet complementary parts.  First, ARTBA is calling for expanded investments in the existing “core” highway and transit programs—financed by a minimum 10-cents-per-gallon increase in the federal motor fuels excise—to protect past infrastructure investments, particularly on the Interstate system.  It also includes indexing the user fee to inflation to protect future purchasing power, and Ruane said, to help keep pace with the dramatic construction material price increases that make projects more expensive, thereby reducing the overall return on transportation investment.

Second, ARTBA is advocating the creation of a new, 25-year 3C construction program.  It would add needed intermodal capacity to ensure the safe and efficient movement of goods, and would be financed with new freight-related user fees.

To learn more about ARTBA’s vision for the future of the nation’s transportation programs, visit www.criticalcommercecorridors.com.  Established more than 106 years ago, ARTBA represents the U.S. transportation design and construction industry in the Nation’s Capital.

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