Letter to Chairman DeFazio and Ranking Member Norton - Transportation Alternatives Program

Letter

September 10, 2015


The Honorable Peter DeFazio
U.S. House of Representatives
2134 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

The Honorable Eleanor Holmes Norton
U.S. House of Representatives
2136 Rayburn House Office Building
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Ranking Member DeFazio and Ranking Member Norton:

As you work on a long-term surface transportation bill, we ask that you continue your history of strong support for the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP).

We greatly appreciate your leadership to support bicycling and walking and to defend against threats to a multi-modal transportation system. We stand with you in this fight. For the House transportation bill to be bipartisan, it must not cut funding for TAP or make policy changes that undermine the local availability of these dollars.

As you well know, TAP provides much-needed funds for local transportation priorities, including bicycling, walking and Safe Routes to School projects. All funds in TAP must be made available through a competitive process, ensuring that the mayors and local leaders who best know their own communities can seek funding for projects that fit their needs.

Communities of all shapes and sizes--rural, urban and suburban--are clamoring for TAP dollars to give their residents lower-cost transportation options that reduce road congestion, improve safety for children and families, and boost quality of life. These types of projects are also essential to helping cities and counties increase property values, grow retail sales and attract tourism. While MAP-21 gave states the option of transferring up to half of TAP funds to other transportation priorities, just 10 percent of TAP funds have been transferred--clearly showing the demand for these funds across the country. This is a good program and it deserves to continue.

Thank you again for your long history of leadership on this issue. We look forward to working with you to preserve the Transportation Alternatives Program in the House transportation bill.

Sincerely,

Rick Larsen
Member of Congress

Jerrold Nadler
Member of Congress

Corrine Brown
Member of Congress

Eddie Bernice Johnson
Member of Congress

Elijah E. Cummings
Member of Congress

Michael E. Capuano
Member of Congress

Grace F. Napolitano
Member of Congress

Daniel Lipinski
Member of Congress

Steve Cohen
Member of Congress

Albio Sires
Member of Congress

Donna F. Edwards
Member of Congress

John Garamendi
Member of Congress

André Carson
Member of Congress

Janice Hahn
Member of Congress

Richard M. Nolan
Member of Congress

Ann Kirkpatrick
Member of Congress

Dina Titus
Member of Congress

Sean Patrick Maloney
Member of Congress

Elizabeth H. Esty
Member of Congress

Lois Frankel
Member of Congress

Cheri Bustos
Member of Congress

Jared Huffman
Member of Congress

Julia Brownley
Member of Congress