The Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program Assessing 10 Years of Experience -- Special Report 264 (2002) / Chapter Skim
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Chapter 5 - Findings and Recommendations
Chapter 5 - Findings and Recommendations
Pages 155-170
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From page 155... ...
Summary of Findings It is not possible to undertake a credible scientific quantitative evalu ation of the cost-effectiveness of the CMAQ program at the national level. An evaluation of the CMAQ program must take into account the magnitude of the air quality problem in the United States and must also provide a realistic expectation of the influence one rela tively small program can have on improving air quality.
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From page 156... ...
A broad range of regional transportation planners, operating agency staff, air quality officials, and interest groups consulted for this study see value in the CMAQ program and support its continuation. This conclusion is not surprising because the CMAQ program helps finance the mandates imposed on the transportation sector by the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments (CAAA)
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From page 157... ...
The CMAQ program provides regions with the incentives and opportunity to experiment with nontraditional transportation proj ects, particularly alternatives to highway projects that are popular among elected officials and citizens. Given the scarcity of available funding, this focus would probably not have occurred without the CMAQ program.
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From page 158... ...
Thus, it is possible to make great improvements in the present ability to track the effectiveness of CMAQ projects. The limited evidence available suggests that, when compared on the sole criterion of emissions reduced per dollar spent, approaches aimed directly at emission reductions (e.g., new-vehicle emission and fuel standards, well-structured inspection and maintenance programs, and vehicle scrappage programs)
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From page 159... ...
The pro gram provides incentives and resources for local agencies to think seriously about new strategies for improving air quality and reduc ing congestion. With its focus on new facilities and services and its breadth of eligible nontraditional transportation projects, the pro gram encourages local areas to experiment and provides the oppor tunity to fund small demonstration projects.
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From page 160... ...
, a fact that enhances the value of such strategies as use of remote sensing and well-structured inspection and maintenance programs to detect and possibly repair heavily polluting vehicles, and vehicle scrappage programs designed to take these vehicles off the roads. Once cost-effective strategies have been applied in a nonattain ment area, more stringent versions of these programs (e.g., enhanced inspection and maintenance, regional ridesharing)
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From page 161... ...
The CMAQ program's legislative restriction on projects involving construction of new capacity for single-occupant vehicle travel should also be main tained, given the uncertain effects of such projects on air quality and the availability of other funds for this purpose.
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From page 162... ...
The case studies conducted by the committee suggest that some regions do involve air quality agencies in these ways, but often the agencies have a more limited role. Air quality agencies are expressly charged with reducing emis sions of air pollutants and meeting national air quality standards.
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From page 163... ...
For exam ple, on the basis of the review of vehicle scrappage programs provided in Appendix F and summarized in Chapter 4, these programs, which appear to be more cost-effective than many other types of projects routinely approved under the CMAQ program, should be eligible for CMAQ funding.1 Current restrictions on the use of public funds for private purposes should be reviewed to permit such programs. Regions should also consider wider use of CMAQ funds for projects focused on heavy-duty diesel vehicles and freight transport that can demonstrate the potential to reduce particulate emissions.
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From page 164... ...
8. The agency responsible for CMAQ project selection in each nonattainment area should develop a process by which projects can be identified, selected, and evaluated in the context of the specific air quality and congestion problems of that region.
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From page 165... ...
The intent of this structure is not to add a new layer of regulatory requirements, but to build on and strengthen the existing trans portation planning and certification process. With greater ability to measure program performance against objectives, responsible local agencies should be in a better position to document the effects of CMAQ projects, report on those effects to their constituencies, and provide more complete input to FHWA's national CMAQ database that could be used for evaluation purposes.
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From page 166... ...
the alternative mode of transportation that would have been taken, if any, had the bicycle path not been built. The results of the survey helped CATS staff identify bicycle path locations that attracted commuters rather than recreational bikers, determine whether bicycle trips replaced trips by car, and develop estimates of the emission reductions attributable to those trips.
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From page 167... ...
FHWA, in consultation with EPA, should take the lead in initiat ing a well-focused national program of evaluation financed by CMAQ funds set aside for this purpose. The program would fund a selected group of studies -- perhaps drawing on a representative sam ple of CMAQ projects both within and across regions -- in which competitively selected researchers would work with local agencies to collect baseline data and track project performance using credible evaluation criteria.
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From page 168... ...
Topics addressed might include, for example, human health effects and exposure assessment research concerned with in-vehicle and near roadway exposure, as well as ecological effects of vehicle emissions and other secondary impacts. Concluding Comments Since its inception, the CMAQ program has provided nonattain ment areas with a modest but valuable source of funds dedicated to addressing their air quality and related congestion problems.
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From page 169... ...
2001. Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Training Development.
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From page 170... ...
0660-06/CH05 6/12/02 4:17 PM Page 170
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