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November 10, 2005
The Honorable George W. Bush
Office of the President
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, DC 20500
Dear Mr. President:
On behalf of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA) and its 1,600 member organizations, I write to express our deep disappointment and concern that the $17.1 billion Reallocation and Rescission Packages for Hurricane Katrina Relief and Recovery recently proposed by the Administration include no recommended funding for rebuilding and restoring public transportation in the affected areas.
Just like highways, ports and airports, public transportation systems in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast sustained significant and heavy damage from hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and Baton Rouge's population has more than doubled. We are at a loss to understand why the Administration's proposal includes funding for the Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration ($2.325 billion), Federal Aviation Administration ($40.6 million), and Maritime Administration ($7.5 million) but none for DOT's Federal Transit Administration (FTA). While the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has provided some short-term relief for public transit systems, that agency does not have the expertise or relationship with public transit systems that FTA does which will be so critical to longer term recovery efforts.
Public transit agencies in the affected communities are struggling to provide service which is badly needed in areas ravaged by the storms. In the face of these demands, public transit agencies are working with damaged facilities and vehicles, and with little of the local tax base that normally help support their efforts. We understand that the Department of Transportation has quantified the costs of repairing and recovering local transit systems in the affected areas. Indications are that it will take from $900 million to $1.7 billion in new funding through FTA to bring these systems into good working order.
Mr. President, in the face of high fuel prices you wisely asked Americans to conserve fuel by using public transportation. People cannot use what they do not have. We respectfully ask you to amend the Administration's Hurricane Relief Packages and include at least $1 billion for rebuilding public transit in the hurricane ravaged areas.
Sincerely yours,
William W. Millar
President
WWM/cbo
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