Introduction
At the beginning of the 21st century, transportation in the United States, though mature in many respects, is as controversial as ever. Debates over the siting of new highways, airline safety, fuel economy standards, speed limits, the health effects of vehicle emissions, and similar topics are as complex and contentious as any that rage in the national and state capitals. The debates are intensified by the vital importance of transportation to the economy as well as to the lifestyles and expectations of Americans. Thus, any major policy change affecting transportation can have extraordinary economic, social, and political ramifications. This should come as no surprise. National expenditures on transportation represent the equivalent of 11 percent of the gross domestic product, and transportation accounts for 19 percent of total household spending (Figure 1). About 11 million people, or 8 percent of the labor force, work in transportation industries or provide transportation services.
Also driving the debates over transportation policy is the fact that more than 40,000 lives are lost and 3 million serious injuries inflicted every year on the nation’s highways. Moreover, transportation is the major driver of the nation’s increasing reliance on imported petroleum and is a significant source of air and water pollution.
Committees of the Transportation Research Board of The National Academies have played a major role in the transportation policy arena. Their work has generated findings and recommendations that have helped frame issues, shape debates, and inform the policy-making process. The following sections present highlights of the reports produced by the committees to address the following overarching areas of transportation policy: passengers and freight, finance, safety and security, environment and energy, human resources, and research and development. Interested readers will find much greater detail in the reports themselves. Links are provided for all reports available online in the sections that follow.
Policy Study Committees of the Transportation Research Board
The Transportation Research Board (TRB) of The National Academies has been providing technical guidance on transportation to the states and the federal government for more than 80 years. The National Academies—encompassing the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, the Institute of Medicine, and the National Research Council—is an independent, nonprofit organization that operates under the congressional charter granted to the National Academy of Sciences in 1863.
Since 1982 TRB has conducted an influential program of policy studies on issues of national importance in transportation. Each study is carried out by a specially appointed independent committee. Committee members are selected to represent appropriate areas of expertise and a balance of perspectives on the issues involved; members serve without compensation. The committee process is open to public scrutiny and comment in accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act Amendments of 1997. Each final report undergoes a rigorous institutional review, in which outside experts examine the report in accordance with guidelines developed by The National Academies to ensure that the committee has provided a balanced and fair assessment of the topic addressed.
TRB has conducted more than 100 policy studies in response to requests by Congress, agencies of the executive branch, and the states on a wide array of complex, often controversial transportation topics. Topics include counterterrorism, speed limits, highway design, truck size and weight regulations, airport capacity, transit use, high-speed rail, airline deregulation, dredging, environmental policy, school transportation safety, and automotive safety. To conduct these studies, TRB draws on the nation’s leading experts in transportation and related fields to assess the technical bases for policy and regulatory decisions across all transportation modes; analyze the potential effects of transportation policy alternatives on mobility, safety, the economy, and the environment; and review specific research and development programs. Funding is typically provided for each study by a designated federal agency, the state departments of transportation, or foundations.