Welcome to the FastLane: The Official Blog of the U.S. Secretary of Transportation

Innovation at the DC Auto Show emphasizes the re-emergence of manufacturing industry

Innovation is the cornerstone of the automotive industry.  From safety improvements like seatbelts and airbags to technological advances like catalytic converters and alternative fuel vehicles, invention and creativity have propelled the world's automakers for more than a century.

So when I visited the Washington Auto Show yesterday, I was very excited to see what is coming next.  And the exhibits definitely did not disappoint.

As I said last week, Detroit is back.  After a few years of struggle, the Big Three--General Motors, Chrysler and Ford--have been able to re-emerge stronger and more profitable because of restructuring, innovation, and President Obama's decision to invest in American workers and American ingenuity.

These companies are making a profit for the first time since 2004; they’re gaining market share; and Chrysler and GM repaid the U.S. Treasury nearly 100 percent of the money President Obama lent them in 2009.

And it's not just the American companies that have been revitalized. Whether we're talking about the Big Three, BMW, or Toyota--this resurgence means jobs for American workers who have been waiting on the sidelines to get back in the game.   In the Detroit area and across the nation, the world's automakers are hiring American workers to help them meet the renewed demand.

FTA proposes New Starts streamline

Earlier this week, the Federal Transit Administration proposed significant changes in the way America's major transit projects compete for federal funds.  This revamped approach will speed up the New Starts process and focus more on transit options that fit local needs.

In his State of the Union address Tuesday night, President Obama asked government agencies to streamline bureaucracy wherever possible, and that’s exactly what we’re doing. The changes we've proposed would move more job-generating bus, rail, and ferry projects from the drawing boards into construction sooner and with less red tape along the way.  And when we save time, we also save the federal government and local taxpayers money on interest, up-front costs, and other expenses.

As FTA Administrator Peter Rogoff said, “We’re aiming to make common-sense changes that will make a big difference to communities that need more mobility and better access to jobs sooner rather than later.”

Construction on Seattle's Capitol Hill station, jobs supported in part by New Starts

We're also proposing to make it easier for communities to win approval of projects that better reflect their local vision.  Let's face it: with major transit projects, one size does not fit all.  It makes little sense to force an individual community's project to fit a rigid and outdated set of criteria determined by a federal agency a thousand miles away. 

TRB meeting features panel of past and present Secretaries of Transportation

It's been an exciting couple of days to be Secretary of Transportation. Tuesday night, I had the opportunity to be in the Capitol for the 2012 State of the Union, and yesterday, I had the good fortune to sit on a panel with five of our nation's previous Secretaries of Transportation.

Every day, in the corridors of DOT, I see the portraits of Alan Boyd (1967-69), James Burnley (1987-89), Samuel Skinner (1989-91), Andrew Card (1992-93, and Rodney Slater (1997-2001), so it was great to share the stage with them in person yesterday at the annual meeting of the Transportation Research Board.

Each of us shared stories of crises and successes, and I hope the TRB meeting-goers who attended found the discussion as fascinating as I did.

Six Secretaries of Transportation at one table; that's TRB.

I was particularly struck by the wit of our nation's first Secretary of Transportation, Alan Boyd, who was appointed by President Lyndon Johnson when the Department was created and had many tales to tell of the colorful characters who populated DOT in its early days.

But he also shared with us one of DOT's greatest successes: getting automakers to include seat belts as standard equipment on America's cars.  As he said, "In 1966, 55,000 people died in motor vehicle crashes. Then we added the seat belts.  And in 2010 that number was down to 45,000, even though Americans drove five times the number of miles in 2010."

That's quite a safety legacy.  And I hope our current campaign to end distracted driving will have a similar impact.

 
Talking before the panel with Andrew Card and Alan Boyd

In Virginia and across the nation, building an economy that will last on infrastructure that will last

In his State of the Union speech on Tuesday, President Obama laid out a blueprint for an America that is built to last.  And if we are going to build an economy that lasts, we need to start with a foundation that lasts.  We need to start with our infrastructure.

That's why I crossed the Potomac River yesterday and drove south to visit our neighbors in Virginia and take a look at the great work they’re doing near Richmond on the I-95 Lombardy Street Bridge.

All photos by Tom Saunders, VDOT

Now, normally, bridge parts are built on the construction site then fitted together.  It's the way we've always done it, but this approach requires extra space, time, and equipment, leading to higher costs, longer construction, and more of those delays that cause headaches for commuters, travelers, and truckers.

So in Richmond, the Virginia DOT is trying something different. Bridge elements are manufactured offsite, then transported to the highway and assembled into position. This makes bridge replacement more efficient, more cost effective, and more convenient for users of this critical interstate highway. 

With VDOT Project Engineer Jorge Suarez, Richmond Mayor Dwight Jones, VDOT Bridge Project Engineer Scott Fisher.