Public transportation is essential for all Americans even for those who do not use it. It helps people to get to where they want to go, sustains the country’s economy as it creates employment and ensures its sustainability. It also stimulates the economy and increases the values of properties while aiding in the preservation of the environment through the reduction of carbon emission. The presence of a sustainable transport system enables the nation to reduce its dependence on foreign oil. The importance of an efficient transport system cannot be overstated. A good transport system translates to a strong economy and thus a better quality of life for the citizens (Coughlin, D'Ambrosio & National Older Driver Safety Advisory Council, 2012).
It is the responsibility of the democratic government to provide its citizens with a socially optimal level of transportation infrastructure. On the other hand, voters need to have the right preferences to push for the right agenda that will facilitate this quest.
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History of Investment in Infrastructure
In the period between 1926 and 1939, America constructed six suspension bridges mainly in the metropolitan regions. Four of these bridges were the longest in the world. Two more such bridges were again built in less dense areas from the period spanning between 1964 to date. Following the end of World War II, there was a great construction of transportation infrastructure including tunnels and urban highways stimulated by the economic boom of the period. The twentieth century witnessed the significant development of urban infrastructure initiated by the federal government. This entailed great projects such as the Lincoln Center in New York, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco and the Dan Ryan Expressway in Chicago (Garvin, 2007).
This development was encouraged by the increased population in the cities before 1930, the emergence of the automobile in the late nineteenth century and the increased federal funding for local infrastructure projects during the Great Depression. At this period, there was public cooperation, and the local community did not oppose the projects. Due to community opposition, mega- infrastructure construction projects were later discouraged. To undertake such projects, the government has to put into consideration concerns for the local community. In the process, billions of dollars have to be spent to protect and compensate the residents. The current restrictive environment has to a great extent discouraged the building of transport infrastructure since the opposition by the community could not be ignored (Garvin, 2007).
Pricing strategies
The pricing decisions for infrastructure are intertwined with their investment decisions. Like other public goods, the demand for transport depends on its cost. Such costs will include infrastructure user charges, fuel costs, taxes, intermodal transfer charges, and wages for the conductor, driver or pilot, interest as well as the depreciation charges. Any variations in the cost elements will lead to changes in the demand for transportation, affecting the expansion or upgrading of the transport infrastructure. Transportation infrastructure involves a capital decision that if once undertaken, cannot be reversed because it is long-term, inflexible and lumpy (Georgescu, 2015). Such decisions must, therefore, be well informed and made while taking into account the projected economic growth that will directly affect transportation as well as the structural changes in prices and taxes.
Pricing decisions are important as they affect the level of investment. On the other hand, according to Wee, Annema , and Banister (2013), investment has a direct effect on the transportation price. Investment in infrastructure affects user costs by altering congestion delays, vehicle depreciation and the rate of accidents among others. The structure of investment matters a lot as it may either reduce or increase the user charges. If the government decides to invest in infrastructure that leads to the expansion of capacity, the result will be to reduce congestion, and this will enable the user charges to fall. If the investment is to focus on the construction of more direct and faster routes, this will also reduce congestion, but due to more efficient services, the user charges will increase. As such, the interdependence between pricing and investment requires that these decisions be undertaken jointly (Wee, Annema & Banister, 2013).
Wee, Annema , and Banister (2013) adds that in the US, various pricing strategies are used which includes variably priced lanes, variable tolls on roadways, zone-based pricing and area-wide pricing. Variably priced lanes include HOT lanes and express toll lanes. For HOT lanes, Low Occupancy Vehicles pay a toll while High Occupancy Vehicles (HOVs), emergency vehicles as well as transportation buses use the lanes free of charge or pay lower rates. For variable tolls, standard tolls are charged on variable-toll schedule. During peak travel hours, the toll charged is higher whereas during off-peak travel hours the toll rate is lower. This is a motivation for motorists to drive when there is less congestion while allowing a free-flow of the traffic on peak hours.
The high tolls during peak hours are set in such a way that they are reasonable enough for motorists to pay the extra cost for the convenience of flowing traffic during peak hours. The same strategy is allowed on toll-free facilities to control traffic flow. Tolls are charged as per the time of the day and are only applicable for congested roadways with the aim of managing the traffic and ensure that the highways carry the right capacity for which they were designed for. Zone-based pricing is applied as an entrance fee for vehicles driving in congested areas. The areas that are targeted for this strategy are the city centers with the aim of reducing urban congestion and encourage the use of public transportation. Area-wide pricing is charged based on the miles covered by motorists (De & Wanna , 2018).
The Current Situation
T he current situation in America calls for the need to allocate more finances on infrastructure. The country has more than 4 million miles of road, 3,000 transit providers as well as 600,000 bridges. This situation indicates the vastness in demand for transport and one would expect that the budget for transport infrastructural development as a share of the GDP will have an upward trend to cater for the growing need. Furthermore, the population has increased, which means that the demand for transport has also increased. The increased population also means that congestion is also high. Understandably, maintenance backlog has also increased (Alden, 2016). However, for the past 20 years, investment in transport by the federal, state and local government as a share of the GDP has decreased.
Comparing the US with its competitors in the overseas, the country lags. Its global position regarding infrastructure has also deteriorated. By 2013, it had dropped from the 7 th to the 18 th position within less than a decade according to the World Economic Forum rankings on the quality of roads. Only 35% of major American roads are rated to be in good condition while the remaining 65% is of poor quality. 25% of bridges are in need of significant repairs or expansion as they cannot handle the current traffic while 45% of Americans cannot access transit (Alden, 2016). These inconveniences due to inadequate public transport result in higher costs for the public regarding time spent in traffic, money spent on extra fuel and lost time by families, additional transportation costs incurred by businesses and shipping delays, which lead to increased prices on common products (Alden, 2016). When the government makes less than optimal investment in transport infrastructure, it not only leads to higher costs for the public and businesses but also negatively impacts on public safety to the effect that traffic fatalities increase, which is mostly due to poor roadway conditions especially in rural America.
Conclusion
Public transport is important as it benefits all Americans in one way or the other. People can access different places as they wish, the economy gets to run smoothly and get stronger among other benefits. Investment in transport infrastructure in America has seen significant changes marked by great construction after World War II followed by a slow-down mainly due to the public opposition that has made constructions very expensive. The country's transportation infrastructure lags behind and is in need of more development. However, the restrictive environment brought about by community opposition has made it very expensive to undertake such projects. The current pricing strategies in transportation include variably priced lanes, variable tolls on roadways, zone-based pricing and area-wide pricing aimed at reducing congestion.
References
Alden, E. S. R. (2016). How America stacks up: Economic Competitiveness and U.S. Policy (6 th
ed.). Council on Foreign Relations.
Coughlin, J. F., D'Ambrosio, L. A., & National Older Driver Safety Advisory Council (U.S.).
(2012). Aging America and transportation: Personal choices and public policy (6 th ed.). Springer Pub. Co.
De, P. M. A, & Wanna, J. (2018). Road pricing and Provision: Changed traffic conditions ahead , (6 th ed.). ANU Press.
Garvin, M.J. (2007). Rethinking mega-project development strategies: A case study of the
Central Artery/Tunnel Project. Structure and Infrastructure Engineering , 3(2), 147-157, doi: 10.1080/15732470600590796
Georgescu, B. (2015). Pricing Strategy in Services-Pricing Strategies in Transport Services. The
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Wee, B., Annema, J. A., & Banister, D. (2013). The transport system and transport policy: An
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