Transportation's Role in Reducing U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions ...

Transportation's Role in Reducing U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions: Volume 1
A recent Federal Highway Administration study found that quantification of
GHG emissions is one of the most challenging aspects of integrating climate
change into transportation planning for States and MPOs. There is room for
improvement across the board in inventory techniques and techniques for
estimating the impact of policies and strategies. 120
Technical assistance also can
provide States, MPOs, and other planning entities with greater ability to work
with stakeholders and the public to select the most effective and cost-effective
GHG reduction strategies.
Technical assistance can be accommodated within the existing legislative and
regulatory process. Simply improving planning and analysis capabilities,
however, is no guarantee that GHG reduction strategies will be implemented. In
addition, technical assistance would be of limited value to local agencies if they
do not have the resources to implement or make use of improved methods. The
benefits of technical assistance would be increased if it is accompanied by
funding to support the use of specific planning or analytical methods.
Regulations
Federal regulations that direct State and metropolitan transportation planning
can influence GHG reductions through a number of avenues. Changing these
regulations may require legislative authorization, followed by a DOT rulemaking
process to revise the existing regulations. Other actions to change planning
could be done under current law. In addition, regulations can be established
(through legislative authorization) that expand the scope of Federal influence in
transportation planning to other modes or geographic scales.
GHG Consideration
The most direct approach would be to establish explicit requirements to consider
GHG within the statewide and/or metropolitan planning process. 121 The current
Federal transportation planning statutes and regulations include a number of
requirements that generally align with climate change mitigation, such as requiring
that plans “protect and enhance the environment [and] promote energy
conservation” and that plans discuss “potential environmental mitigation activities.”
Perhaps the mildest form of additional regulation would be to require
consideration of greenhouse gas emissions as a transportation planning factor,
without including any specific requirements as to how GHG should be
addressed. While climate change and GHG reduction already can be considered
under the energy and environment planning factor, creating a stand-alone
provision would reinforce the importance of this issue within the planning
120 ICF International, 2008 (cited).
121 Highway and transit transportation planning requirements are found in 23 USC 134,
23 USC 135, 49 USC 5303, and 49 USC 5304, as well as 23 CFR 450.
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