Today, the President sent his “America First" budget for FY 2018 to Congress. This is a strategic document that looks to the future, and is designed to send a clear message on deficit reduction.  For DOT, it addresses the department's discretionary programs, which make up about one-quarter of the Department’s total resources.  These proposed savings are largely geared towards future program investments, so they will not have an immediate direct impact on our DOT colleagues. This is just the beginning of the budget process, not the end.  We will see the more complete picture when OMB releases its final FY 2018 budget in May, and as the President’s infrastructure initiative takes shape.  In fact, OMB Director Mulvaney noted yesterday that the strategy behind the savings in the DOT budget is to move money out of existing, inefficient programs and hold these funds for more efficient programs that will be included in the infrastructure package under development. 

The budget announced today preserves the ongoing safety programs at the heart of our Department’s mission. In addition, it reaffirms the President’s strong commitment to modernizing our country’s outdated infrastructure with a strategic, targeted program of investments that will improve our economy, strengthen competitiveness and create jobs.  The program will encompass common-sense regulatory, administrative, organizational and policy changes that will speed project delivery.  More budgetary, tax and legislative details will be provided in the coming months. 

Today’s budget announcement is the start of national dialogue about our country’s priorities for the future and how best to manage the tax dollars we are given.  I look forward to working with the Department, Congress and the various stakeholders on the opportunities ahead.   

According to legend, St. Patrick banished the snakes from Ireland. This St. Patrick’s Day, you can do an even greater service by helping the U.S. Department of Transportation and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration banish drunk driving from our roads.

Drunk driving killed 10,265 people in 2015. During the St. Patrick’s Day holiday alone—it claimed 30 lives. Every year, without fail, roughly one-third of deaths in motor vehicle crashes are due to someone making the selfish and often deadly choice to drink and drive. It happens despite the fact that it is illegal everywhere in America to drive with a blood alcohol concentration of .08 or higher—and that an arrest for drunk driving could cost you as much as $10,000 in attorney fees, court costs and other expenses.

About every three hours, a person or vehicle is hit by a train.

Last year, 232 people were fatally injured in rail crossing accidents.

Stop. Trains Can’t.

That’s the message of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) heightened two-year effort to reduce accidents and fatalities at railroad crossings. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) have partnered in this nationwide, month-long effort to encourage motorists, particularly young males, to use caution when approaching railroad crossings.

Spring may be just one week away, but wintry road conditions are still a concern for many drivers. Vehicle maintenance is important all year long—especially during the dangerous winter months. NHTSA has prepared a list of winter driving tips to help you reach your final destination safely.

Get ready to spring forward on Sunday, March 11, at 2 a.m. as Daylight Saving Time begins. Along with checking your smoke detector batteries, make sure you take a moment and check for vehicle safety recalls. Adding this to your spring and fall safety routine keeps you and your family safe all year long. In fact, don’t stop there. Safety recalls can also affect child car seats and tires. You can check for recalls at NHTSA.gov/Recalls.

Before the summer of 2016, Patricia Arcuri did not expect to pursue a career in transportation, but her experience that summer led her down a path she had not seen before.

“It introduced me to an exciting world I did not know about – the transportation industry,” she said. “The transportation industry is fascinating and provides various opportunities for professional development for women with different skills and abilities.”

Spring break is just around the corner. As travelers prepare for any spring break travel with family and friends, it is important to take a few minutes to review the contents of luggage–it makes everyone safer. 

The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (US DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) is responsible for regulating and ensuring the safe transportation of hazardous materials (HAZMAT) nationwide. To do so, PHMSA must work closely with its federal partners who help enforce HAZMAT regulations.

Movement equals action, to paraphrase Albert Einstein. That’s true in science. It’s true in business. It’s true in health care, education, media—in every facet of the American patchwork.

And it’s true in the U.S. military, where humanitarian and combat missions rely on swift transportation solutions where success or failure can mean lives saved or lives lost.

 

All five major transportation modes carried a share of the more than $1 trillion in freight that crossed the U.S. borders with Canada and Mexico in 2016.  Based on the value of the freight, trucks carried most – 65.5 percent – a higher share than a year earlier and a decade earlier in 2006.

Rail (15.5 percent), vessel (5.5 percent), pipeline (4.6 percent) and air (3.9 percent) carried the remaining share of cross-border freight. Here is a more detailed look at the shipments on both borders.

Winter is still here, at least it is in some parts of the United States. And since it’s here, snow and ice can create unfavorable driving conditions—making both roads and rails slick, and potentially increasing the chance of your car having a hard time crossing railroad tracks.

That leads to this question: If your car gets stuck on a railroad track, would you know what to do?

Today marks my first month’s return to the Department!   The Vice President had presided over my swearing-in and my family was able to attend.  The past first four weeks have been filled with meetings, briefings, visits, consultations and outreach to you, members of congress and key stakeholders to be updated on the current issues facing the Department and our country. 

This past weekend, I met with a number of governors and spoke to the National Governor’s Association Winter Meeting on “Innovation & Infrastructure.”   The nation’s infrastructure was, obviously, on the top of their agenda. It was informative and interesting to learn about the innovative ways governors are tackling infrastructure challenges in their states. They emphasized that each state was different and there is no one-size-fits-all solution to every issue.  They wanted flexibility to be able to address the issues within their states.  Many states have become incubators of emerging technology and remarkable agents of change. I am looking forward to the Department forming strong partnerships with them going forward.

Sometimes the U.S. Department of Transportation’s many agencies, or modes as they are often called, can be tricky to keep up with. What does each do? Who and what does each serve?

This blog series, called 10 Things on US DOT Modes, will introduce readers to each mode (along with a few sub offices). Today’s blog will explore the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration by listing 10 important or interesting things to know about the agency.

Whether they are emergency responders, city planners, pipeline operators, homeowners, students or just curious neighbors, it’s important for community members to know where pipelines are located so they can be avoided or found, serviced and monitored.

The U.S. Department of Transportation offers an excellent resource for learning more about local pipelines. The National Pipeline Mapping System’s (NPMS) Public Map Viewer includes interactive maps showing the locations of hazardous liquid and gas transmission pipelines, and Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) plants nationwide. Interested individuals also can access information about related pipeline incidents going back to 2002.

Each day this week, we are observing National Engineers Week – an enthusiastic celebration of the contributions millions of engineers have made, and continue to make, to society as a whole – and extending a heartfelt welcome to the next generation of engineers.

For the last three days, we have highlighted a president who was an engineer or used engineering during his career.  Our fourth in this series requires some mythbusting.