Skip to main content

IBTTA, ITS America respond to Trump’s infrastructure plans

The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (IBTTA) and ITS America have both responded positively to President Donald Trump’s address to Congress, where he outlined his administration’s priorities, including repairing and rebuilding America’s transportation infrastructure. Trump said he will ask lawmakers to approve legislation that would see a US$1 trillion investment in infrastructure, funded by a mix of direct federal investment and private financing, according to The Hill.
March 1, 2017 Read time: 2 mins

The International Bridge, Tunnel and Turnpike Association (63 IBTTA) and 560 ITS America have both responded positively to President Donald Trump’s address to Congress, where he outlined his administration’s priorities, including repairing and rebuilding America’s transportation infrastructure.  

Trump said he will ask lawmakers to approve legislation that would see a US$1 trillion investment in infrastructure, funded by a mix of direct federal investment and private financing, according to The Hill.

Patrick D. Jones, executive director and CEO of the IBTTA, commented that the transportation community welcomed Trump’s vision for rebuilding US highways, bridges and tunnels, saying both Congress and the Administration appear to have found common ground on the need to make additional transportation investments.

He went on, “Over the next few months as this vision evolves into detailed policy proposals and budget figures, the age-old question of how to pay for this plan can quickly become a sticking point.

“As we begin the hard work to achieve the vision of new airports, first-class highways and magnificent bridges, we must also work hard to have an open and robust conversation about how to pay for this vital infrastructure. To move this country forward and expand the economy, we need infrastructure that is second to none.  For that to happen, we need to convince the American people that we must invest a little more to get the kind of infrastructure we need.”

ITS America president and CEO Regina Hopper thanked the president and his administration for recognising the urgent need to rebuild America’s crumbling infrastructure and said ITS America looked forward to working with the government to find solutions to rebuild the country’s transportation system.

She concluded, “Safer highways and roads are urgently needed. In 2016, more than 40,000 people died in accidents on our nation’s highways and roads. Intelligent transportation solutions will go a long way to saving lives and preventing injuries.”

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Bill Halkias: 'We need a sustainable world'
    April 20, 2021
    In the first of our Tolling Matters interview series, Bill Halkias, MD & CEO of Attica Tollway Operations Authority and president of the International Road Federation, talks to Adam Hill about post-Covid recovery and sustainable mobility
  • Massachusetts plans all-electric tolling
    March 8, 2013
    Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) is committed to implementing all-electronic tolling (AET) by the middle of 2016; the Tobin Bridge will be converted first as a demonstration to familiarise the public, according to Frank DePaola, the state's highway administrator. The state is going all-electronic because with modern technology it's the most cost-effective way to collect tolls, and because it reduces delays to motorists and improves safety at toll points, he said. MassDOT has estimated it
  • Transport Secretary says high-speed rail and Northern Powerhouse ‘a priority’
    June 2, 2015
    In a keynote speech in Leeds, UK Transport Patrick McLoughlin has confirmed high-speed rail and Northern Powerhouse are a priority. He said that boosting growth in the north, rebalancing the economy and creating a Northern Powerhouse were a vital part of the long-term economic plan and confirmed that work on High Speed 2 (HS2) is on track to start in 2017. Work is also well underway on developing plans for high-speed east-west rail links. He confirmed that US$18 billion government funding would be inv
  • ARTBA highlights transport's importance to US
    May 16, 2012
    New data available from the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) highlights the importance of transportation spending to US economic growth. This information can be sourced through a new Internet resource set up by ARTBA. The data has been revealed at a time when the multi-year highway/transit authorisation bill is still being discussed in the US Congress. The US secretary of Transportation, Ray LaHood, said at the CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2011 that he hopes a six year authorisation bill will