The Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program Assessing 10 Years of Experience -- Special Report 264 (2002) / Chapter Skim
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Chapter 1 - Introduction
Chapter 1 - Introduction
Pages 19-36
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In the following year, passage of the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) established the first federally funded transportation program explicitly targeting air quality improve ment -- the Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement (CMAQ)
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2 to help meet air quality improvement targets in nonattainment areas (i.e., 1The 1970 Clean Air Act and the subsequent 1977 and 1990 amendments charged the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with the task of establishing the NAAQS on the basis of maximum acceptable atmospheric concentrations of six air contaminants considered to be harmful to public health, known as criteria pollutants: carbon monoxide, lead, nitrogen dioxide, ozone, particulates, and sulfur dioxide.
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Program goals were determined by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and the Federal Transit Administration (FTA)
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Finally, changes were made in project eligibility that are described in some detail in a subsequent chapter. Study Charge Origin of the Study As noted earlier, during hearings on the reauthorization of ISTEA, questions were raised about the efficacy of the CMAQ program in reducing emissions and improving air quality (AASHTO Journal 1997a; AASHTO Journal 1997b)
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. They urged that CMAQ funds not be used for highway expansion projects, questioning the link between congestion mitigation and air quality improvement (AASHTO Journal 1997a; AASHTO Journal 1997c)
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and EPA also supported reauthorization of CMAQ at increased funding levels in anticipation of more stringent air quality standards (AASHTO Journal 1997a; AASHTO Journal 1997b)
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Program Versus Project Focus In reviewing its charge, the committee drew a distinction between a program- and a project-level evaluation. At the program level, the key task is to determine whether program funds are being directed appropriately toward the intended goals -- in this case air quality improvement and congestion mitigation -- and with what effect.
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Complex Program Goals Evaluation of the CMAQ program is complicated by the program's dual goals -- air quality improvement and congestion mitigation. Given the legislative history of the program (following closely upon the CAAA of 1990)
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Difficulty of Measuring of Final Outcomes Ideally, a comprehensive evaluation of the CMAQ program would include an attempt to quantify the effects of projects funded under the program on desired final outcomes -- improved air quality and human health, and reduced congestion.11 These outcomes should be measur able by such performance indicators as reductions in concentrations of criteria pollutants and numbers of pollution-related illnesses and deaths for the air quality improvement goal, and faster travel speeds and reductions in travel delay for the congestion relief goal. In practice, however, the relatively small changes that result from CMAQ projects are difficult to measure.
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. in n delays vehicle-miles Emission Reductions Congestio Mitigation Reduction· travel = (VMT outcomes project Change vehicles occupancy Change Change reduction reduction shifts CMAQ Vehicle Cleaner· Behavioral Trip· VMT· Mode· Vehicle· Transportation System Infrastructure· Operations· potential of Flow 1-1 CMAQ Projects Figure
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Fourth, these changes represent only a portion of a complex set of factors that affect ambient air quality levels and human health risks. For example, measuring the effects of a CMAQ project on reducing ozone, a key program concern, depends not only on the tailpipe emissions of the precursor pollutants, but also on the mix of NOx and VOCs already in the local atmosphere, the transport of ozone or its precursors into the area, and local weather conditions (NRC 1991)
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Consistent with the decentralized focus of the program, however, no provision was made for collecting the data in a uni form way so that projects could be compared across regions. Thus, the FHWA database proved insufficient for evaluating the effec tiveness of CMAQ projects.
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Some CMAQ projects, such as traffic flow improvements, that were implemented in the early program years, are likely to have shown greater emission reductions than they could yield today or in the future. Thus, what may be learned about the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of past projects may not hold true in the future.
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to review the relevant literature, with a focus on more-recent studies and on available postimplementation studies aimed at determining the extent to which projected out comes of CMAQ strategies (e.g., emission reductions) were realized (Tasks D, E, and F of the congressional request -- evaluating emission reductions attributable to CMAQ projects, assessing the quantita tive and qualitative benefits of the projects, and assessing the cost effectiveness of projects with regard to congestion mitigation, respectively)
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Finally, the case studies helped the committee understand some of the difficult-to measure qualitative aspects of the program (Task E of the congres sional request, assessing the quantitative and qualitative benefits of CMAQ projects)
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References Abbreviations AASHTO American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials FHWA Federal Highway Administration NCHRP National Cooperative Highway Research Program NRC National Research Council TRB Transportation Research Board AASHTO Journal.
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1997. Testimony Regarding Reauthorization of Transportation Related Air Quality Improvement Programs, Hearing (105-28)
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1996. Testimony Regarding Reauthorization of the Intermodal Sur face Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA)
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