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“NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION WEEK” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Transportation was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E850-E851 on May 17, 2002.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
NATIONAL TRANSPORTATION WEEK
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HON. ELIJAH E. CUMMINGS
of maryland
in the house of representatives
Thursday, May 16, 2002
Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, as you may be aware, this week May 12-18, we celebrate National Transportation Week. The 2002 theme is
``Transportation . . . It Keeps America Moving.'' National Transportation Week is an opportunity to celebrate the successes of our transportation system and to promote transportation-related careers.
As a member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and the Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Transportation Braintrust, I would like to share with you the concerns I have about our dwindling transportation workforce. I would like to point out the opportunities we have to increase the transportation workforce through initiatives underway by local universities and the U.S. Department of Transportation.
When we discuss transportation, we focus on the more tangible aspects of the system that we see everyday, like the physical road, railroad tracks, and transit systems. We often overlook the very people who make the system work--the professionals and laymen who have established the U.S. transportation system as one of the safest and most efficient in the world. Transportation and traffic engineers, transportation planners, construction and work zone crews, intelligent transportation systems specialists, and transit operators to name just a few of the positions in a fast-paced, dynamic environment. These jobs require personnel with the skills and talent to build, operate, and maintain a vast network of systems. Guaranteeing an efficient and smoothly operating transportation system requires the best and brightest in our workforce.
Despite a recent US. News and World Report cover story that highlighted transportation engineering as one of the eight most secure jobs and the immersion of new technologies that are expanding career opportunities in the transportation industry, much of the seasoned transportation workforce is slowly disappearing. According to the Federal Highway Administration, 40 percent of the State and local transportation workforce is between the ages of 45-64. In the next 5 to 15 years, 40 to 50 percent of all transportation workers will begin to retire. An article in the July/August 2001 issue of Public Roads, entitled, Help Wanted: Meeting the Need for Tomorrow's Transportation Workforce, by Clark Martin, amply illustrates these concerns. I would like to submit the article for the record.
These statistics, compounded by an increased demand on our transportation system, amplify the need for the development of a skilled transportation workforce to manage and operate the system. We must look at increased funding for programs that ensure an expanded pool of transportation personnel as-well-as gender and ethnic diversity within the current and future transportation workforce.
Some programs that promote transportation jobs include: Dwight David Eisenhower Transportation Fellowship Program; Technology Transfer Centers; National Summer Transportation Institute for Secondary School Students; Garrett A. Morgan Technology and Transportation Futures Program; Summer Transportation Internship Program for Diverse Groups; and The University Transportation Centers Program.
In my district of Baltimore, Maryland, the Morgan State University Transportation Center (UTC) is making strides to meet society's needs for transportation professionals. The theme of Morgan's UTC is
``Transportation: A Key to Human and Economic Development.'' The Center promotes transportation-related careers, and provides training and research opportunities to equip future transportation professionals with the knowledge and skills required to plan, develop and manage transportation systems. These skills include, but are not limited to, designing and implementing intermodal transportation facilities, advanced highway construction, magnetic levitation technology and smart growth community planning.
The Department of Transportation is taking a strong stand on this issue. Just this week, the DOT Modal Administrators and influential leaders in the transportation professional community attended the inaugural National Transportation Workforce Summit in Washington, D.C. The attendees participated in workshops focusing on the Workforce Pipeline, Training and Development, and Institutionalizing Workforce Development. The signing of ``A Partnership for Educating, Training and Developing the Nation's Transportation Workforce'' by Summit participants on May 13, 2002, was an important outcome of the meeting. The signers of the document agreed to work in partnership to:
1. Provide, within their own agencies and organizations, a focus on implementing programs and policies that will assure the development, support and management of an efficient and effective workforce;
2. Support partnership efforts in the transportation and education communities that will help build young people's interest in transportation careers, and will support continuing education, training and professional development opportunities for today's and tomorrow's workers; and
3. Promote a greater understanding that an efficient, well-trained workforce is critical to developing, operating, and managing the Nation's transportation system, and it is vital to National security, U.S. economic growth, and the quality of life for all Americans.
As we continue to review issues related to TEA-21 and prepare for its reauthorization, I hope that we will begin to look at how we can assist the Department of Transportation and the transportation professional community in meeting these goals to address the transportation development needs of our nation.
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