A bipartisan alliance called Mobility Choice Coalition last week released a 10-point plan for a free market-oriented approach to expanding competition among US transportation modes.
The stated purpose of the Blueprint for Mobility Choice is to reduce oil’s strategic value, and it is backed by several significant figures in US politics including Anne Korin, co-director of the Institute for Analysis of Global Security (IAGS); R. James Woolsey, former CIA director; Robert C. McFarlane, former National Security Advisor; and Cliff May, president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
The Blueprint for Mobility Choice lays out four guiding principles on
how to move to a competitive transportation market in America.
Following these principles, Mobility Choice proposes 10 transportation
policies that will remove barriers to competition not only amongst
transportation fuels but also among transportation modes.
According to the Coalition, current U.S. transportation policies suppress competition and
promote inefficiency in oil use and the following 10 policies can help America move to a competitive
market.
- Ensure
the price of fuel better reflects oil’s security impact. In order to
show consumers the real cost of oil, an oil security fee should be
charged per barrel or at the pump. - Deploy “HOT” lanes and
congestion pricing. New highway, bridge and tunnel infrastructure
should be moved to user fees comprised of tolls and include congestion
pricing where necessary. - Allocate transit dollars to optimize oil
savings. Taxpayer dollars should be spent in a more cost-effective way
on capital improvements that would improve service on highway routes
and new routes that are expected to be constantly busy. - Increase
insurance choice. Legislation should revoke state regulations that
prevent insurance companies from offering consumers the option of
pay-as-you-drive insurance. - Transit vouchers: mobility choice for
low-income households. To promote competition, subsidies, such as
transit vouchers, should be given to low-income families. - Unburden the trip not taken.
Government should promote telecommuting and compressed workweeks as
well as provide tax incentives for telecommuting setup. In addition,
interactions with the government should be handled online. - Return
gas tax revenue to areas with the most traffic and oil savings
potential. Metropolitan areas should be qualified to acquire a large
amount of federal gas tax receipts through a brand-new program or
through the existing Surface Transportation Program in order to
increase efficient and transparent use of funds. - Liberalize local
land-development rules. Currently, regulatory barriers inhibit
neighborhood design that allows little driving. Eligibility of
municipalities for certain federal transportation funds should be
constructed liberally. - Deploy smart traffic management. Roads and
transit lines should be equipped with the latest and best technology to
improve traffic. - Deploy electric rail if justified by cost
efficiency and oil displacement potential. Transit agencies should be
required to evaluate cost efficiency and oil savings in order to
justify federal funding for new rails under the right circumstances.
“America’s dependence on oil not only undermines our economy, it also poses serious risks to our national security. We must act now to strip oil of its status as a strategic commodity by eliminating government regulations that stifle competition and promote inefficiencies in our transportation system,” said Anne Korin.
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