Editorial: U.S. House throws transit under a bus
Published Thursday, Feb. 09, 2012

The day before a House Ways and Means Committee hearing last week, Republican leaders sprang a radical change to U.S. transportation policy.

If they have their way, the nation’s transportation network will take a giant step backward to a “roads only” policy for dedicated funding. The full House votes next week on a multi-year transportation bill (House Resolution 7) – and Americans should urge their members of Congress to reject it.

The United States needs a transportation system that gives people a variety of options – roads, rail, bus, bicycle paths and walkways. It needs to find ways to reduce emissions and traffic congestion.

Currently, the federal gas tax we all pay when we fill up at the pump goes into the Highway Trust Fund. Since President Ronald Reagan signed the 1982 transportation bill, the money has been divided into an account for highways and an account for mass transit…