Federal Highway Administration head tours WYDOT’s Transportation Management Center

May 15, 2015

The head of the Federal Highway Administration toured WYDOT’s Transportation Management Center (TMC) in Cheyenne Thursday and discussed the need for continued federal investment in Transportation infrastructure and safety.

Greg Nadeau became the acting administrator of the FHWA on Monday after serving as deputy administrator since 2009. He was in Cheyenne for the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials spring meeting.

“This is a great example of an investment in safety,” Nadeau said of the TMC, which monitors highway and traffic conditions around the state, updates WYDOT’s 511 Travel Information Service, controls, electronic message and variable speed limit signs and sends out alerts to travelers. “The fact that we can give travelers this kind of information, you can’t calculate how many incidents you’re preventing, but you’re absolutely preventing crashes from happening.”

Nadeau noted the FHWA’s authorization to operate the federal transportation program expires at the end of May and Congress has yet to take the steps necessary to reauthorize the program.

“The president and Transportation Secretary Anthony Fox have put a proposal forward, it’s called the Grow America Act, and the president’s budget would significantly increase funding long term over the next six years, basically to rebuild America’s transportation infrastructure, which is sorely in need of attention. We have basically deferred serious investment in our transportation infrastructure far too long.”

Calling it a pivotal point in the effort to get states and communities the resources they need to develop their transportation infrastructure, Nadeau said the Grow America Act would provide a 30 percent increase in transportation funding over six years, and pay for it with tax reform measures.

“Essentially that’s the debate that’s going on in Congress now,” he said. “We have to get by this Highway Trust Fund fiscal cliff that we’re facing at the end of this month, before we can get back to talking about the long-term solutions."