Skip to main content

Public transit CEOs highlight urgent need to invest in aging US public transportation systems

CEOs of large, mid-size and small public US transportation systems attending a press call as part of National Infrastructure Week have sounded the alarm for the urgent need to increase infrastructure investment in America's public transportation systems. The Federal Transit Administration (FTA) cited a US$86 billion backlog in deferred maintenance and replacement needs with more than 40 per cent of buses and 25 per cent of rail transit assets in marginal or poor condition, according to the latest data
May 23, 2016 Read time: 2 mins
CEOs of large, mid-size and small public US transportation systems attending a press call as part of National Infrastructure Week have sounded the alarm for the urgent need to increase infrastructure investment in America's public transportation systems.
 
The 2023 Federal Transit Administration (FTA) cited a US$86 billion backlog in deferred maintenance and replacement needs with more than 40 per cent of buses and 25 per cent of rail transit assets in marginal or poor condition, according to the latest data from 2013.  At the same time, with ridership increasing by 37 per cent since 1995, public transit systems are challenged to increase service and capacity.   

"After decades of inadequate investment, the American public transportation infrastructure is crumbling," said American Public Transportation Association (APTA) chair Valarie J. McCall, who serves on the board of the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (GCRTA).  "This neglect demands attention at all levels of government so that public transit can continue to help grow communities and businesses."

"As public transportation has experienced tremendous growth over the last two decades, public transit systems are struggling to maintain aging and outdated infrastructure while at the same time being challenged to expand capacity," said APTA acting president and CEO Richard White.  "While Congress's passage of the federal FAST Act was a step in the right direction, the job is still not done because we are woefully behind in investing in our infrastructure. Estimates to meet current national public transportation demand will require a capital investment of US$43 billion annually over six years by all levels of government.  Currently, the US invests US$17.7 billion annually."

Related Content

  • January 20, 2012
    Transport technology transforming bus stops in Los Angeles
    David Crawford reports on a pioneering blend of transport technology and aesthetic By gaining a design award before installation has even started, the US$6.9 million City of Santa Monica (California)'s Big Blue Bus Shelter and Branding Package has ensured early interest among what it expects to be a new wave of transit riders. The American Institute of Architects' Los Angeles chapter's recently conferred 'Next LA Citation Award for Architecture', given for design excellence in projects as yet unbuilt, comm
  • December 11, 2014
    Congress ‘needs a lesson in smart transportation’
    Former US transportation secretary Ray LaHood says Congress needs to learn there’s more to transportation funding in the 21st century than building more roads and bridges. He urged smart transportation advocates attending the Smart City Council’s Smart Cities Now forum in San Diego this week to take their message to Congress. There are new people in Congress who are going to write a transportation bill, LaHood suggested, and if they don’t incorporate all of the smart technologies that the forum has
  • June 10, 2014
    Latin America ‘needs major investment in mass transit’
    Latin America needs to invest heavily in mass transport services to improve living standards in urban areas, according to Norman Anderson, CEO of US-based consulting firm CG/LA Infrastructure. "Unless there is mobility, it's hard to imagine cities being successful, cities being creative, so one of the things we emphasised, and we think is really important, is the whole mobility issue," Anderson said in an interview. In its most recent report on strategic infrastructure projects in Latin America, CG/L
  • June 22, 2012
    Would Americans support increased taxes to improve highways, streets, and transit?
    The Mineta National Transit Research Consortium has released a peer-reviewed research report, What Do Americans Think about Federal Tax Options to Support Public Transit, Highways, and Local Streets and Roads? Results from Year 3 of a National Survey. that summarises the results of a national random-digit-dial public opinion poll that asked 1,519 respondents if they would support various tax options for raising federal transportation revenues. Special focus was placed on understanding what would motivate pe