Leaders of California public transportation agencies testified on the relationship between surface transportation projects and job creation efforts at a Feb. 23 joint field hearing of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee and the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee in Los Angeles.

"Simply put: Americans need jobs and cities and states across the nation need a federal partnership to help us put people back to work, which can be done through smart, innovative investments in our transportation infrastructure," said Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, a member of the Los Angeles Metro Board of Directors, in his testimony. He noted that a county sales tax approved by the voters will generate $1.8 billion in the current fiscal year "that we are using to build, operate, and maintain a multi-modal transportation system, including robust investments in both highways and public transit," along with federal and state support.

The mayor, one of several speakers present, described a proposal for a federal infrastructure investment program that could generate almost one million new jobs nationwide and $51 billion in income while also generating $158 billion in total economic output.

Steve Heminger, executive director of the Metropolitan Transportation Commission for the San Francisco Bay Area in Oakland, CA, and a member of the National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission, quoted the commission's report, Transportation for Tomorrow: "The Commission believes that surface transportation programs cannot fully contribute to economic growth, international competitiveness, or other national goals without a national investment strategy." He called for the federal government to protect its existing transportation infrastructure and suggested "a more productive partnership between the federal government and the nation's major metropolitan areas."

Will Kempton, chief executive officer of the Orange County Transportation Authority (OCTA) in Orange, CA, testified that "investment in transportation infrastructure is essential to the creation of jobs and global competitiveness" and reported on major transportation projects in his county. "OCTA's discussions with Congress and the administration over the past months have revealed that others in Washington share the view that now is the time to expedite federal funding and reduce the burdensome requirements long associated with major federal projects," he said.

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