[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 16] [House] [Pages 23737-23739] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]CONGRATULATING THE AMERICAN PUBLIC TRANSIT ASSOCIATION FOR 25 YEARS OF COMMENDABLE SERVICE TO THE TRANSIT INDUSTRY AND THE NATION Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 171) congratulating the American Public Transit Association for 25 years of commendable service to the transit industry and the Nation. The Clerk read as follows: H. Con. Res. 171 Whereas public transportation is a fundamental public service and an integral component of the Nation's surface transportation infrastructure; Whereas public transportation service results in productive jobs for the Nation's workers and provides broad support for business and economic growth; Whereas public transportation provides safe and efficient mobility for millions of people in the United States each day; Whereas the American Public Transit Association was established in 1974 to promote and advance knowledge in all matters relating to public transportation; and Whereas, during a period of remarkable resurgence in public transportation, the American Public Transit Association has provided a quarter of a century of service to the Nation as the professional association representing the transit industry: Now, therefore, be it Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring), That Congress congratulates the American Public Transit Association for 25 years of commendable service to the transit industry and the Nation. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Petri) and the gentleman from West Virginia (Mr. Rahall) each will control 20 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Petri). Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to have this opportunity today to bring this concurrent resolution to the floor of our House. House Concurrent Resolution 171 congratulates the American Public Transit Association on its upcoming 25th anniversary. APTA was formed on October 17, 1974, when the American Transit Association and the Institute for Rapid Transit were merged. Today APTA has over [[Page 23738]] 1,200 members, including bus, rapid transit, and commuter rail systems, as well as transit suppliers, government agencies, State Departments of Transportation, academic institutions, and trade publications. In 1997, there were 8.6 billion transit trips in the United States. Ninety percent of these trips occurred on transit systems that are APTA members. APTA has been a strong advocate for transit issues in our Nation's capital, as well as a resource for information and education for its member organizations. I am pleased to have this opportunity to recognize APTA's efforts today. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support House Concurrent Resolution 171, and I reserve the balance of my time. Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, as we congratulate APTA on its 25 years of service, I would note that while the large transit systems such as Washington Metro and BART often attract the most attention, the backbone of public transportation in this country is still the providers in small communities and rural areas. On a daily basis in small communities across our country, many Americans rely on their local bus systems, such as what we have in Huntington, West Virginia, for their transportation needs. Indeed, the Tri-State Transit Authority is a shining example of what makes transit so important in this country, and is one of the reasons why we are commending APTA today. I would also be remiss if I did not note that another reason why we should be honoring public transportation today is the strong presence of the Amalgamated Transit Union. This organization represents the vast majority of transit workers who daily operate the trains and buses which get people to and from work in a safe manner and their leisure pursuits, as well, and their contribution to public transportation is also being commended today. I urge the adoption of the pending resolution, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Oberstar), the ranking member of the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding time to me. I want to congratulate the subcommittee on moving this legislation, and express my appreciation to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Shuster), for moving the bill, the gentleman from Wisconsin (Chairman Petri), and the ranking member, the gentleman from West Virginia (Mr. Rahall), for their support in recognizing the American Public Transit Association on its silver anniversary year. Mr. Speaker, it may seem unusual to be recognizing an organization of this nature on the House floor. Yet, there is nothing more important for the growth, strength, and quality of life in urban America than public transit. I can remember very vividly as a junior staff member at the time in July, 1964, when President Johnson, on July 9, to be exact, signed into law the Urban Mass Transportation Act of that year. It was seen as an historic piece of legislation. It was the first time that the Federal Government had actually recognized the role of public transportation, transit, as it was called, or beginning to be called at that time, and this small step forward was seen as an important landmark for urban America. Not that transit had just been discovered by the Federal Government in 1964. In fact, the first transit system was actually a ferry, the Boston ferry, in the 1600s. I think the exact time was 1630 when it began its operations. The longest continually operating transit system in America is the St. Charles Line in New Orleans. In fact, the St. Charles Line began in 1835, and runs in front of my wife's family home in New Orleans, which is also the site of the annual Mardi Gras festival. The St. Charles Line continues to operate today with upgrades and with improvements and with each of the cars filled with travelers, without which people would not be able to get to work, people would not be able to hold jobs, people would not be able to have affordable transportation in this city that is so clogged with traffic because of the nature of the city streets and the nature of the layout of the community. Over the years our committee, then the Committee on Public Works and Transportation, now the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure, has continued to support and widen the role and widen the public support for transit. Last year Americans made 8.7 billion trips on transit. About a fourth of those took place in New York City. The New York City transit system carries 2.2 billion passengers a year. Without transit in New York and Northern New Jersey, the area would need 10,400 miles of four-lane highway, which of course is impossible in New York City, it could not be done. And even then, if we could build all that highway, we would still be able to carry only one-third of the passengers that are carried by transit in New York City. So let us recognize here not just the 25th anniversary of APTA, formed 10 years after President Johnson signed UMTA, the Urban Mass Transportation Act, into law, but let us recognize in so doing the extraordinarily critical role that urban transit systems play in the lifeblood of America's great metropolitan areas: affordable, high- quality alternative transportation choices for commuters, for people visiting cities, reducing congestion and improving travel time for motorists, reducing air pollution, enhancing the quality of life in neighborhoods. Here in our Nation's Capitol, the Metro system has meant vast improvement in air quality and in access for welfare-to-work, for people who live in poor neighborhoods to get to the jobs that are necessary for their livelihood. We could do better. We could do as the metro system does in Paris, which moves far greater numbers of people, and of course, that is a 9 million population metropolitan area. But the Paris metro system, for less than half the cost of monthly transit in Washington, D.C., moves three or four times as many people on a daily basis. We can do better, and in TEA-21 our committee, with the support of the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Shuster), made the investments necessary to carry America into the 21st century, to balance transportation. There is an 80-20 split. Eighty percent of the bill goes to highways, 20 percent to transit, and we continue the growth of investment in transit systems as well as in commuter rail, in light rail systems. In celebrating the 25th anniversary of the American Public Transit Association, we are also celebrating the progress that we have made in improving transit systems, making them more affordable, making them higher quality, making them available to more people, and in the welfare-to-work provisions of TEA-21, we passed another historic milestone. It is not enough to say we have ended welfare. It is more important to say we have also provided access to jobs for people. My daughter, Annie, works at Jubilee Jobs in the Adams Morgan area of Washington, where she places people who have fallen through the welfare net, who are living in homeless shelters, who come into Jubilee Jobs in their location in Adams Morgan needing work. The biggest problem is not finding the job, but marrying the person and the job with a means to get to work. The job is meaningless if you do not have money in your pocket, if you do not have a way to get to work. We provided that linkage in the welfare-to-work provisions of TEA-21. We have made a great start on the 21st century. APTA has helped us get there. This legislation, TEA-21, has moved us forward, and with this resolution today we recognize not only the 25th anniversary of APTA, but we recognize the enormous contributions that public transit is making in the quality of life of all Americans, particularly those neediest among us who have to rely on public transportation systems to get to their work. Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. [[Page 23739]] Mr. PETRI. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time. The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the gentleman from Wisconsin (Mr. Petri) that the House suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution, House Concurrent Resolution 171. The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor thereof) the rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution was agreed to. A motion to reconsider was laid on the table. ____________________