New research by the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis at the School of Public Health estimates that the additional fine particulate matter emissions that can be traced back to traffic congestion in the nation’s 83 largest urban areas lead to more than 2,200 premature deaths in the U.S. last year. The related public health cost, researchers say, was, conservatively, at least $18 billion.

Nearly 500 construction industry executives participated in the Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) fly-in this week, visiting with Senators and Representatives about the need to pass long-term transportation reauthorization legislation with additional revenue to prevent a significant drop in federal transportation investment.

As AGC members deployed on Capitol Hill this week to urge their members of Congress to enact a timely multi-year surface transportation reauthorization bill, Senate Environment and Public Works  (EPW) Chairwoman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Ranking Member James Inhofe (R-Okla.), along with Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.) and Ranking Member David Vitter (R-La.), issued a statement (link to attachment) on Wednesday saying that that have made “great progress” in moving a surface transportation reauthorization bill. 

Congress this week passed the 19th short-term extension of the Federal Aviation Administration authorization.  The extension, which runs through June 30, 2011, extends Airport and Airway Trust Fund taxes and Airport Improvement Program contract authority. 

This week, nearly 500 people will gather in Washington, D.C., to promote enactment of a multiyear highway and transit authorization.

Last week, a draft surface transportation reauthorization bill started making the rounds on Capitol Hill.  The draft, which was not very informative, was then followed by a more complete (yet undated) 500-page draft called the Transportation Opportunities Act.  

AGC will present testimony at a hearing next week before a Senate Environment and Public Works Subcommittee, which is looking into initiatives to reduce diesel emissions in clean air non-attainment areas.

With Congress returning from a two-week recess, the month of May has the potential to see action on a long-awaited surface transportation bill.  The chairmen of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure and the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works have both indicated they would like to have a bill completed by Memorial Day. 

With Congress on a two-week break, AGC and other transportation stakeholders took the opportunity to brief congressional staff on the importance of passing a surface transportation reauthorization bill.  The briefing, which was sponsored by the AGC-led Transportation Construction Coalition and the Americans for Transportation Mobility, provided nearly 60 staff members the basics of why a multi-year bill is critical to the health of our construction industry and our economy as a whole.

Accelerated Bridge Construction (ABC) is one of the key emphasis areas of Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez’s “Every Day Counts” initiative. AGC has a representative serving on an advisory panel established by FHWA to move this part of the initiative forward. An outgrowth of this effort is the creation of the Center for Accelerated Bridge Construction at Florida International University (FIU). The objective of the Center is to become a resource for bridge owners and bridge professionals in the use of ABC.