As I’ve written before, any serious effort to combat global warming will have to include policies that give Americans more accessible alternatives to driving.
Otherwise continued increases in vehicle miles traveled by car and truck could cancel out reductions in greenhouse gas emissions due to cleaner fuel sources and greater fuel efficiency.
Last week 41 members of the House of Representatives signed a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi urging Congress to address transportation issues in forthcoming legislation on climate change.
Representative Dave Loebsack was the only Iowan to sign this letter, which was drafted by Ellen Tauscher (D, CA-10) and Earl “the Bike” Blumenauer (D, OR-03).
I received a copy of the letter from a Smart Growth America e-mail list and am reproducing it here. I couldn’t find the text anywhere online, so there’s no link:
July 14, 2008
The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
Speaker
H-232, The Capitol
Washington, DC 20515Dear Speaker Pelosi,
We thank you for your continued work to address climate change through federal legislation. As you have previously noted, Congress has a historic opportunity to provide leadership on one of the defining issues of this era. As Congress begins work on comprehensive climate change legislation, we ask that this legislation address the second largest contributor of greenhouse gas emissions: surface transportation.
As you know, surface transportation produces one-third of the United States’ greenhouse gases, and sixty percent of these emissions come from personal vehicle use. Last year, Congress demonstrated leadership on climate change by raising CAFE standards to thirty-five miles per gallon by 2020. However, recent studies suggest that the expected increase in Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMTs) will negate both higher CAFE standards and a reduction of carbon content in fuel. If VMTs are not reduced, transportation sector emissions will rise forty percent above 1990 levels by 2030.
Through climate change legislation, we believe that Congress should encourage greater use of VMT-reducing strategies, especially public transportation. Significant funds should be dedicated to increase public transit, intercity passenger rail, freight rail capacity, intelligent transportation systems, and bicycle and pedestrian alternatives. In addition, the legislation should encourage smart growth and transit-oriented development.
We believe that climate change legislation should allocate a portion of funds to all sectors that generate greenhouse gases, including transportation. Supporting VMT-reduction strategies will lower greenhouse gas emissions, decrease transportation costs for Americans, and relieve pressure on other sectors to meet an overall emissions cap. Without such efforts, other industries will have to overcompensate to offset the transportation sector’s emissions. In addition, these policies will have the added benefits of providing consumers with increased transportation choices, improved accessibility, a greater range of housing choices, improved personal health and fitness, decreased air pollution, and reduced traffic congestion and commute times.
In the coming months, we look forward to supporting legislation that will reduce the transportation sector’s greenhouse gas emissions and demonstrate the United States’ commitment to addressing climate change.
Sincerely,
Ellen O. Tauscher
Earl Blumenauer(and 39 other members of Congress)
This letter explains concisely why transportation has to be part of our conversation on global warming.
I also like the way it makes clear that dealing with transportation issues in the climate change bill will create more flexibility in setting the emissions caps for other sectors.
The road-building lobbies will vigorously oppose the changes this letter advocates. But perhaps they can be pitted against the powerful corporate interests that will oppose sharp reductions in industrial greenhouse gas emissions.
Here is some background on smart growth and transit-oriented development, in case you are wondering what those terms in the third paragraph mean.
Tauscher and Blumenauer deserve credit for leading on this issue. It will take a huge effort by many people to make good changes in federal transportation policies.
All the representatives who signed this letter are listed after the jump. After Tauscher and Blumenauer, they appear in alphabetical order, as they did on the letter to Pelosi. Chris Shays of Connecticut is the only Republican in the group.
Ellen O. Tauscher (D, CA-10)
Earl Blumenauer (D, OR-03)
Thomas H. Allen (D, ME-01)
Michael E. Capuano (D, MA-08)
Russ Carnahan (D, MO-03)
Andre Carson (D, IN-07)
Emanuel Cleaver (D, MO-05)
Elijah E. Cummings (D, MD-07)
Peter A. DeFazio (D, OR-04)
Diana DeGette (D, CO-01)
William D. Delahunt (D, MA-10)
Chaka Fattah (D, PA-02)
Bob Filner (D, CA-51)
Raul M. Grijalva (D, AZ-07)
Maurice D. Hinchey (D, NY-22)
Mazie K. Hirono (D, HI-02)
Michael M. Honda (D, CA-15)
Jay Inslee (D, WA-01)
Barbara Lee (D, CA-09)
John Lewis (D, GA-05)
Daniel Lipinski (D, IL-03)
Dave Loebsack (D, IA-02)
Zoe Lofgren (D, CA-16)
Betty McCollum (D, MN-04)
Jerry McNerney (D, CA-11)
James P. Moran (D, VA-08)
Dennis Moore (D, KS-03)
Grace F. Napolitano (D, CA-38)
Eleanor Holmes Norton (D, DC non-voting)
John W. Olver (D, MA-01)
Donald M. Payne (D, NJ-10)
David E. Price (D, NC-04)
Tim Ryan (D, OH-17)
Allyson Y. Schwartz (D, PA-13)
Christopher Shays (R, CT-04)
Joe Sestak (D, PA-07)
Albio Sires (D, NJ-13)
Pete Stark (D, CA-13)
Chris Van Hollen (D, MD-08)
Lynn C. Woolsey (D, CA-06)
David Wu (D, OR-01)