FAST Act: Fixing Americas Surface Transportation Act - Essay Example

In the most recent years, transport planning programs have become an element of the requirement in the transportation planning industry that is being conducted year in year out. The important recent legislation of FAST ACT has placed more significant emphasis on freight planning that is sound at the regional and state level as a route that helps in reducing congestion, strengthening economic competitive, improving safety and lessening all environmental impact that is associated with freight movement. FAST Act: Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act: $305 Billion 2016-2022 was signed and included to a public law 114-94 by President Obama in 2014. This Fast Act was enacted to the law so that it will cater for the funding the transportation programs that includes Federal aid highways at a tune of more than $305 Billion that begins the fiscal years of 2016 and runs up to 2020 (Fixing Americas Surface Transportation Act. In 114th Congress of the United States of America). The Fast Act is deemed to be one of its kind long term superficial transportation authorization that was enacted to law. This Act provides a long term funding certainty that covers all the surface transportation programs. Federal Highway Administration is the body that is entitled to run this Fast Act. Thus, this study explores on FAST Act: Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act: $305 Billion 2016-2022 by stating its background and indication on the current Transportation regulations and systems.

Moving Ahead for Progress of the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) that was enacted in the year 2012 had some inclusion of provisions that dictated the Federal surface transportation to be multimodal, performance based and streamlined. Thus they had to come up with an act that will be of aid in addressing all the challenges that faced the transport system in the United States (Breyer, 1991). Therefore, FAST Act: Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act: $305 Billion 2016-2022 was an act based on the modifications made by MAP-21. Hence, FAST Act addresses challenges such as reducing congestion in traffic, transportation system associated problems, safety improvement, making sure that infrastructure conditions are well maintained, improving freight movement and system efficiency, protecting the environment and finally, reducing any delays in project delivery (Hughes, 1995).

The FAST ACT setting embraces transportation investment in all highways. FAST ACT is beneficial to both the economy and society as a whole. The FAST ACT's investment has the following merits to the United States. They include;

FAST ACT Will Improve the Mobility of Vehicles on All American Highways

The FAST ACT is to mandate the federal state to fund and establish new programs that will support all critical transportation projects that will facilitate and ease congestion on all highways. At the same time, it will ease and facilitate the movement of all freight on the major roads and interstate system. For instance, the FAST ACT advocated for a development of a new National Highway Freight Program, National Multimodal Freight Policy, sanctioning a new discretionary funding sequencer for Highway Projects and National Significant Freight (FASTLANE) and apportioning the funding that is channeled through National Highways Freight Program.

Supporting Economic Growth and Creating Professional Careers

The authorizing of more than $226.3 Billion by the FAST ACT as a Federal funding that started in the year 2016 through to 2020 that will cater for walking improvements, bicycling, road and bridge construction. Additionally, the FAST ACT takes account of numerous provisions that are designed to bring an improvement to freight movement hence supporting the national goal of creating sustainable careers in the transport industry (Landers, 2016).

The FAST ACT Promotes Innovation and Accelerates Project Delivery

The FAST ACT is based on the reforms of FHWA's Every Day Counts and MAP-21 initiative. The FAST Act: Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act: $305 Billion 2016-2022 integrates significant changes that are intended at ensuring transportation projects are timely delivered. The changes that FAST ACT brings will help in improving efficiency and innovation the development of projects. Thus, if FAST ACT is fully implemented entirely, will lead efficiency through environmental review process and planning that is essential to project delivery.

Since the FAST Act was executed by Federal Highway Administration, a lot of developments have been seen. Federal Highway Administration through its structures has implemented the Act fully and introducing new information that is essential in the implementation progresses. With the current transportation regulation and systems, developing presentations and fact sheets have been surfaced that ensures highways and public stakeholders have primary information that is provided in the provisions of FAST Act. Secondly, Fast Act has led to the funding of all state, tribes, Metropolitan Planning Organization, locals and other individuals make use of it all over the country. Thirdly, it has helped in issuance in the guidance that entails in filling details of new laws that answer any unmet stakeholder questions. Finally, it has led to the development of regulations that are essential in implementing the FAST Act (Schwartz, 1973).

Therefore, FAST Act supplements to some examples of all the ground-breaking contracting methods that offers alternative bidding to USC 23, under Section 120. This part encourages contracting methods, use of innovative materials and construction practices. The FAST Act has made it eligible for federal share that is higher to segment a pavement technology in the transport sector.

References

Act, F. A. S. T. (2015). Fixing Americas Surface Transportation Act. In 114th Congress of the United States of America, January (Vol. 6).

Breyer, S. (1991). On the uses of legislative history in interpreting statutes. S. Cal. l. Rev., 65, 845.

Hughes, L. (1995). Buy North America: A Revision of FTA Buy American Requirements. Transp. LJ, 23, 207.

Landers, J. (2016). On the right track. Civil Engineering Magazine Archive, 86(2), 60-83.

Schwartz, B. (Ed.). (1973). The economic regulation of business and industry: a legislative history of US regulatory agencies (Vol. 2). Chelsea House Publishers.