It’s Time for Congress to Give Public Transportation the Funding It Deserves
By Representative Jesús “Chuy” García
This week, I introduced a resolution calling for transit parity along with Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, and 30 other Members of Congress. Transit parity means giving just as much money to public transportation projects as highway projects. Currently, Congress still uses a 40-year precedent to determine funding for highways and public transportation projects. Since 1982, approximately 80 percent of federal transportation program funding has been allocated to highways, while only 20 percent has been allocated to public transit. When this 80-20 split was decided, 1 cent of a 5 cent gas tax increase was dedicated to transit. But since 2008, over $144 billion in general taxpayer dollars have been used to supplement dwindling gas tax revenues for highway and transit spending. While this 80-20 split still exists, it is out-of-step with the current needs of our country.
Across the country, millions of essential workers are relying on crumbling, delayed, and otherwise faulty public transit systems to get to work and lead their lives. An estimated 2.8 million of our essential workers rely on public transportation to travel to and from work. Public transportation also has significant implications for racial and economic justice. For instance, low-income communities of color and rural communities disproportionately rely on public transportation. Over one million rural households do not have access to a car, according to data from the American Community Survey, and these households are reliant on public transportation to access jobs and essential services. According to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics, it costs an average of over $9,000 a year to own and operate a car and according to the American Public Transportation Association, 60 percent of public transit riders are people of color. Without public transportation, millions of Americans would be unable to access their jobs, grocery stores, schools, and doctor’s offices.
Furthermore, the climate crisis requires that we reimagine and decarbonize our transit systems to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, the transportation sector generates the largest share of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. To avert the worst impacts of the climate crisis and support working families, we need safe, reliable, and convenient public transportation. We need to invest in viable transportation alternatives and assess funding incentives so we can start to rebuild our built environment in a more sustainable, less highway-reliant way. Right now, the solution to congestion is often building more roadway because that's there the money is. But that solution does not take into consideration the phenomenon of induced demand--when you build more road capacity, you induce more demand and actually create more congestion.
A long-overdue investment in public transportation is overwhelmingly popular among voters. On a recent national survey, Data for Progress asked likely voters several questions about public transportation. First, they asked voters whether they think Congress should increase funding for public transportation, or if Congress should not waste taxpayer money and increase the national debt funding a service that not all Americans utilize--a common talking point against this proposal. A majority of all likely voters (64 percent) agree that Congress should increase funding for public transportation and the millions of low-income Americans, essential workers, and communities of color that depend on it. A majority of voters who self-identify as Democrats (64 percent) and independents (63 percent) agree that Congress should increase funding for public transportation. While voters who self-identify as Republicans are nearly evenly split on this issue, 46 percent agree that Congress should increase funding for public transportation, indicating real potential for support across the aisle on transportation funding.
Data for Progress also asked voters about the 80-20 split and whether the federal government should provide equal amounts of funding for highways and public transportation. Despite being shown arguments against this proposal, a majority of voters (61 percent) support the government funding highways and public transportation equally. Support for transit parity is bipartisan: a majority of Democrats (74 percent), independents (53 percent), and Republicans (54 percent) all support getting rid of the 80-20 split and funding highways and public transportation equally.
Lastly, with many public transportation systems facing financial crises due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Data for Progress asked voters whether they support or oppose Congress prioritizing funding for public transportation as part of future coronavirus economic relief packages. A majority of voters (63 percent) support Congress prioritizing funding for public transportation—which millions of essential workers rely on--in future relief packages. Again, support for this proposal is bipartisan. An overwhelming majority of Democrats (82 percent), a majority of independents (58 percent), and a plurality of Republicans (46 percent) all think funding for public transportation should be at the top of the list when Congress crafts a new coronavirus relief package.
My resolution charts a path forward to revamp and expand public transit systems. The climate crisis and the lived reality of working people make clear that our government needs to do better and improve the lives of millions of Americans. Public transportation benefits all Americans and should receive funding at equal levels to how we fund highways. At its core, mobility and the ability to get from point A to point B is a matter of equity, equal opportunity, and economic justice. Public transit is not just an option, it is a lifeline. The data makes clear that improving our nation’s public transportation is a priority for voters—it’s time Congress made it one too.
Congressman Jesús “Chuy” García is a Democrat representing the Fourth Congressional District of Illinois.