Lisa Loftus-Otway

Assessing the Direct Employment Impact of Federal Economic Stimulus Funds on Construction Projects in Texas

Owing to the 2008 economic downturn in the United States, the construction industry lost 632,000 jobs nationally, of which approximately 100,000 were in Texas. In response to the economic recession, a stimulus package known as the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), was signed by President Obama on March 6, 2009. This paper presents the results of a study examining the construction employment impact of ARRA spending on Texas transportation projects. The primary goal of this study was to estimate direct employment in the construction industry from spending on construction projects. By using regression analysis, the study assesses employment from data on Texas Department of Transportation projects that used ARRA funds, showing that employment generated by construction projects depends on project type, size, and location urbanization. The findings can be useful to policy makers in allocating funds on construction projects when employment stimulation is an objective.

Preserving and Protecting Freight Infrastructure and Routes

A smoothly functioning freight transportation network is part of the nation’s critical infrastructure and is essential to the operation of the U.S. economy. Rail is a significant component of this infrastructure. There are serious threats to American’s freight rail system caused in large part by intrusion of incompatible land uses, especially in America’s burgeoning megapolitans. Population growth, rising incomes, and other aspects of economic growth have all led to increased competition for the land resources around the freight rail network. Incompatible land uses around freight rail corridors and facilities often results in conflicts between those uses and barriers to efficient freight transportation.This paper discusses the research results from Transportation Research Board (TRB) Project NCFRP 24 that developed a website, www.EnvisionFreight.com, and a report outlining tools and strategies for better planning and design of residential and other structures in proximity to freight corridors and facilities. The paper initially discusses the benefits and importance of an integrated multimodal freight system, and the value of a smoothly functioning freight transportation network. This includes discussion of the freight rail network’s part in the nation’s critical freight transportation infrastructure. The paper then reviews the conflicts and barriers that often occur between incompatible land uses and freight rail assets. Case studies that were conducted during the research are also utilized to show current practices in planning for freight. Finally the paper discusses strategies for preserving and evolving the network of freight rail corridors and access points, which requires foreseeing future areas of conflict and acting proactively in an economically rational manner.Our research found four areas of tools and preservation and protection strategies to minimize and resolve conflicts between freight and other land uses: long-range planning, zoning and design, mitigation, and education and outreach. The research found that tremendous potential exists to significantly affect decision making that impacts freight. With the likely emergence of freight mega-regions that do not respect state or even national boundaries, a new planning dialogue is required to prepare for the next generation freight system to support these regions. Planning decisions that will be made over the next decade will be critical to our future transportation system efficiencies and regional competitiveness. Local and regional freight planning in this context will require highly skilled freight transportation planners, new planning strategies and tools, community support, longer-term regional visioning, and legislative authority.Copyright

Mexico City, Mexico, Commuter Rail: Planning and Implementation of Multijurisdictional, Public–Private Partnership Project

The Mexico City Metropolitan Area in Mexico has grown beyond the original confines of the Federal District and sprawled into surrounding cities located in Mexico State. This transition from a large but centralized city to a sprawling megalopolis means that the challenge of providing services, including adequate transportation options, to the population is growing exponentially. In response to the growing population of commuters, the government has invested in various mass transit projects to increase travel efficiency. The development of a commuter rail system capable of transporting hundreds of thousands of suburban commuters is a priority project that has spanned three Mexican presidencies with continued support. Since its opening in 2008, this suburban electric rail system, the Ferrocarril Suburbano, has been serving commuters between the Mexico City greater metropolitan area and municipalities in the northwest, greatly reducing passenger travel time and curtailing emissions. The project has been sponsored at all levels of government—federal, state, and local—and includes a public–private partnership. Apart from the projects uniqueness in its working collaboration between the different levels of government, as well as the successful concession process and the partnership with the concessionaire, it is also distinctive because it is the first commuter rail project of its kind in Mexico that uses existing rail infrastructure. This study examines the projects development, financing, and concession process.

Preservation and Reuse of Abandoned Rail Corridors: Legal and Policy Issues

The paralleling of existing rail lines in excess right-of-way (R/W) and/or the re-use of corridors first used by railroad companies has long been a method for acquiring linear corridors for other transportation uses. The practice of re-using rail alignments is a logical one given that railroads steered development patterns in the United States prior to the highway era and the corridors that served the railroads also effectively serve existing population centers. The long period of railroad consolidation since the end of World War II resulted in the abandonment and loss of many rail corridors that would now have been extremely valuable for transportation development. Preserving former rail corridors is beneficial to transportation planners at the local and state level, as they can be employed for new transportation uses or multiuse recreational trails.This paper discusses the findings of a multifaceted research project that examined issues associated with acquisition, preservation, and re-use of abandoned rail corridors in Texas. The paper summarizes the legal and policy review that analyzed Texas, Federal, and other state abandonment policies to determine what, if any, changes would be necessary for the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to take advantage of future opportunities to acquire and preserve these corridors. The paper also reviews results that identified and documented past Texas rail abandonments and identification of potential uses for existing/prospective abandoned corridors. The paper concludes with an overview of the findings of this study which noted that as the state’s population continues to grow, preserving all potential transportation corridors for rail or alternative uses will grow in importance.© 2012 ASME