Committee member, U.S. Representative Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.), told the group gathered at a House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee listening session that Congress expects to have $260 billion to spend on transportation in the next six years. That’s 9.2% less money than it spent on the last federal highway bill and far less than the $460 billion the nation needs going forward just to maintain its current system of federal highways and bridges.
Representative John Mica, the Florida Republican who chairs the committee, asked speakers at the Vancouver, Wash., meeting to shelve their pet projects and bring ideas on how to build transportation infrastructure more cost efficiently. Likewise, he said new highway bills won't mention specific projects but will set broad policy on what kinds of projects are eligible for federal funding.
