DOT moving quickly to use transportation funding for economic recovery

The US Department of Transportation is keeping its promise to use its economic recovery funding to invest in the nation’s transportation system and create jobs, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said.

In remarks to the National League of Cities in Washington, yesterday, LaHood told the gathering of urban officials the DOT has moved quickly to release funds to state offices and transit agencies. “In a very short time, your cities will be humming with construction workers, engineers, maintenance crews, and many others,” he said.

“This effort not only puts people to work - it gets people to work in a way that moves us towards our long-term goals of energy security and more livable communities.”

In addition to funding currently being allocated, there soon will be additional opportunities to compete for discretionary funds for transportation projects, said LaHood.

A team of senior officials across the Department - the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) team - is tracking every dollar spent in order to ensure accountability and transparency, he added.