Washington Insight

APWA leadership meets in Washington for Transportation Summit

Tracy Okoroike

Government Affairs Associate American Public Works Association Washington, D.C.

he 2012 APWA Transportation Summit took place April 16-18, 2012 in Washington, D.C., as Congress debated a bill to set up a conference committee to negotiate a surface transportation reauthorization. The Transportation Summit brought together APWA President Diane Linderman, President-Elect Elizabeth Treadway, the APWA Transportation Committee, the Government Affairs Committee (GAC), and the SAFETEALU Reauthorization Task Force to meet with senior Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) officials and congressional leaders and discuss APWA’s advocacy priorities.

The Summit began on April 16 with the APWA Transportation Committee and President Linderman meeting with Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez, Deputy Administrator Gregory Nadeau and FHWA program leaders. During the meeting President Linderman and Administrator Mendez signed a new partnering agreement promoting continued coordination and collaboration between APWA and FHWA to provide quality, costeffective and safe transportation systems.

The following day, members of the Transportation Committee, GAC and SAFETEA-LU Reauthorization Task Force continued the Transportation Summit with several presentations and briefings. The day began with a presentation on Project Delivery Peer to Peer Exchanges by FHWA Deputy Administrator Gregory Nadeau and Brian Roberts, Executive Director of the National Association of County Engineers (NACE). Deputy Administrator Nadeau provided an overview and update on FHWA’s Every Day Counts initiative, designed to identify and deploy innovation aimed at shortening project delivery, enhancing the safety of roadways and protecting the environment. NACE’s Brian Roberts highlighted the discussion and findings of a series of Peer to Peer Exchanges which brought together APWA and NACE members and officials representing state Departments of Transportation and FHWA to discuss challenges, effective strategies and best practices for expediting project delivery.

John German, Chair of the SAFETEALU Reauthorization Task Force, briefed the Summit attendees on the status of the transportation reauthorization debate in Congress, which has been extended by an additional 90 days to September 30 by the House of Representatives and is headed to conference against the Senate’s previously passed MAP21 bill. German reiterated APWA’s Reauthorization Priorities which call for passage of a well-funded multiyear transportation reauthorization that invests in the local transportation system, strengthens local decisionmaking authority and expedites the project delivery process.

On the final day of the Transportation Summit, APWA members met with their Congressional Representatives and Senators to advocate APWA’s advocacy priorities addressing transportation reauthorization, water infrastructure, environment and sustainability, and emergency management and preparedness.

APWA President Diane Linderman and Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez sign the partnering agreement.

Tracy Okoroike can be reached at (202) 218-6702 or tokoroike@apwa.net.

THE ROAD TO PITTSBURGH

The 2012 APWA Sustainability in Public Works Conference will take place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, June 25-27. In each issue of the APWA Reporter we’ll highlight one of Pittsburgh’s unique attractions. Pittsburgh is a great city and the Sustainability in Public Works Conference will be a terrific show!

Pittsburgh is a materials innovator and supplier for a greener global economy, leveraging its world-class manufacturing capabilities to create better-performing green products and building technologies. Pittsburgh is a “Top 10 Metro” for Green Jobs (Global Insight) and Pennsylvania has more than 5,000 green building product manufacturers employing 200,000 people.

Pittsburgh is proud to be home to more than 37 green-certified buildings, including the first green college residence hall and Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens, which is pursuing a net-zero energy and water designation as a “Living Building” for its Center for Sustainable Landscapes, which opened in April of this year. This is a direct result of the region’s green agenda and strong commitment to environmental stewardship. (Photo courtesy of VisitPittsburgh)