ISTEA made clean air an important part of the picture

ISTEA linked transportation to the Clean Air Act and created an important new initiative, the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Program (CMAQ). In areas that are "non-attainment," transportation agencies can no longer simply keep widening the roads to encourage more driving.

The importance of clean air --- AND the contribution that cars make to the problem of air pollution --- can't be overstated. While changes to emission standards have helped, the increase in driving has worked against further improvements. In other words, while new cars may pollute less than they used to, on a per-mile basis, Americans also drive far more than they use do. In the past 40 years, the amount of driving we Americans do has gone up 400 percent!

Even today, 65 percent of carbon monoxide and 47 percent of nitrogen oxide emissions come from cars and trucks. And a recent study of 500,000 adults in 151 cities found that people from regions with the most pollution were 15 to 17 percent more likely to die prematirely than those who lived where the air was cleaner. And we're now finding that the small particulates in exhaust are a prime cause of children's respiratory problems. This is NOT the time to turn back the clock! The chart below shows how people driving alone in their cars contribute to the problem.

Emissions of Common Air Pollutants from the Typical U.S. Work Commute:*

Mode	Hydrocarbons	Carbon Monoxide	Nitrogen Oxides
Rapid Rail	0.2	1	1
Light Rail	0.2	2	42
Transit Bus	12.0	189	95
Van Pool	22.0	150	24
Car Pool	43.0	311	43
Car (1 occupant)	130.0	934	128

* Naturally, those who walk or bicycle are even better for our air than is transit!

What will happen to our air in the new law?

It depends who wins the battle in Congress. There are those who want to go back to the old way. And there are those who want to forge ahead, cleaning the air we breathe.

ISTEA2	Under ISTEA2, the CMAQ program would be maintained AND several new programs would be created. For example, ISTEA2 would create a National Initiative on Transportation and the Environment that would help address air pollution, wetlands loss, energy dependence. Is there any wonder groups like the Alternative Energy Resource Organization, the Center for Clean Air Policy, the Natural Resources Defense Fund, and the Sierra Club support the ISTEA2 platform?
Opposition comes from many State DOTs	Many states consider the CMAQ program to be a nuisance. It restricts their ability use a small pot of gas tax money to do what they want. For example, it can't be used to widen roads and build new highways. The states attack CMAQ as an unnecessary "set aside" and they want to "reduce the regulatory burden" by getting rid of it. Yet this program has produced some of the most innovative clean air projects in the Nation!
Other Proposals	Other proposed bills either eliminate CMAQ all together or they make it a voluntary program. But the chances that states would do it on a voluntary basis flies in the face of reality: they certainly didn't do it before CMAQ!

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