IV 

107TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. RES. 567

Recognizing the importance of surface transportation infrastructure to interstate and international commerce and the traveling public and the contributions of the trucking, rail, and passenger transit industries to the 

economic well being of the United States. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 1, 2002

Mr. GARY G. MILLER of California (for himself, Mr. YOUNG of Alaska, Mr. 

OBERSTAR, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Mr. HONDA, Mr. ROGERS of Michigan, 

Mr. OTTER, Mr. GRAVES, Mr. SHUSTER, Mr. PLATTS, Mr. BROWN of 

South Carolina, Mr. ISAKSON, and Mr. BOOZMAN) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Transportation 

and Infrastructure 

RESOLUTION

Recognizing the importance of surface transportation infrastructure to interstate and international commerce and 

the traveling public and the contributions of the trucking, 

rail, and passenger transit industries to the economic 

well being of the United States.

Whereas prior to 1890, the United States lacked a holistic, 

intermodal surface transportation system that linked 

rural towns and farmland to urban areas and cities for 

the purposes of travel and interstate commerce; 
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Whereas the emergence of the automobile and truck after 

1900 created a public demand and economic need for improved roads, highways, and byways; 

Whereas the mileage of paved roads in the United States rose 

from 204,000 in 1910 to 369,000 in 1920, therby greatly 

enhancing public mobility and interstate commerce; 

Whereas by 2020 the number of registered vehicles in the 

United States is expected to grow from 225,000,000 to 

about 275,000,000, requiring improvements to roads and 

highways; 

Whereas the construction of roads and highways requires the 

skills of numerous occupations, including suppliers, manufacturers, builders, and those in engineering, pavement, 

and gravel industries; 

Whereas the industries which design, construct, and maintain 

roads and highways generate $200,000,000,000 for the 

economy annually and sustain about 2,200,000 jobs; 

Whereas the advent of the truck, and technological advances 

expanding its cargo capacity, dramatically increased the 

ability of the United States to transport goods more 

quickly and efficiently; 

Whereas the trucking industry had $606,000,000,000 in 

gross freight revenues, representing 87.5 percent of the 

Nation’s freight bill in 2000; 

Whereas intercity trucks logged 1,093,000,000 ton-miles in 

1999, representing almost 30 percent of the total domestic intercity ton-miles logged by all modes; 

Whereas commercial trucks consumed more than 

44,000,000,000 gallons of fuel and paid $30,500,000,000 

in Federal and State highway-user taxes in 1999; 
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Whereas by 2013 the total number of commercial trucks will 

increase by a third, from 6,000,000 to 8,000,000; 

Whereas there were 3,090,000 truck drivers in 2000 and 

9,900,000 employed throughout the United States economy in jobs that relate to the trucking industry in 1999; 

Whereas trucks transported more than 83 percent of the 

value of trade between the United States and Mexico and 

more than 73 percent between the United States and 

Canada in 1999; 

Whereas prior to the development of a national system of 

roads and highways for automobiles and trucks, the railway system served as the primary mode of interstate 

travel for the American public and facilitated goods 

movement throughout the United States; 

Whereas America’s freight railroads carry more than 40 percent of the Nation’s intercity freight, including approximately 70 percent of vehicles from domestic manufacturers and more than 65 percent of the Nation’s coal to 

coal-fired plants; 

Whereas railroads in the United States originated nearly 

33,000,000 carloads of freight, including more than 

9,000,000 intermodal trailers and containers, and had a 

freight volume of 1,530,000,000,000 ton-miles in 2000; 

Whereas on average it costs 29 percent less to move freight 

by rail in 2000 than it did in 1981 and 59 percent less 

in inflation-adjusted dollars; 

Whereas from 1980 to 2001 Class I freight railroads invested 

more than $290,000,000,000 to maintain and improve 

infrastructure and equipment and reduced the number of 

train accidents per million train-miles by 64 percent; 
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Whereas the railroad industry employed more than 230,000 

workers in 2001, including engineers, conductors, clerks, 

executives, and maintenance workers; 

Whereas railways and railroads move people and commodities 

in an efficient way and contribute more than 

$30,000,000,000 to the economy through wages, fringe 

benefits, purchases, and taxes; 

Whereas the public transportation system in the United 

States includes buses, trolley-buses, vanpools, jitneys, 

heavy railways, light railways, commuter railways, cable 

cars, monorails, aerial tramways, and ferryboats; 

Whereas Americans used public transportation a record 

9,500,000,000 times in 2001 and transit ridership has 

grown 23 percent since 1995; 

Whereas public expenditures to operate, maintain, and invest 

in public transportation systems in America amount to 

about $15,400,000,000 each year; 

Whereas there are more than 360,000 transit employees who 

work to operate, maintain, and manage America’s public 

transportation system; 

Whereas public transit helps to reduce vehicular traffic congestion on roads and highways and leads to cleaner air; 

Whereas public transit continues to be one of the safest 

modes of travel and helps conserve energy and reduce 

America’s dependency on foreign oil; and 

Whereas public transit has provided the elderly and millions 

of Americans with disabilities expanded mobility and freedom to travel United States: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved, That the House of Representatives recog2 nizes the trucking, railroad, and passenger transit indus-
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1 tries, and the workers in industries which operate, design, 

2 build, and maintain the rights of way along which trucks, 

3 freight trains, buses, and commuter trains travel— 

4 (1) for the immense contribution they make to 

5 the economy by facilitating international and inter6 state commerce; 

7 (2) for their contribution to the freedom of the 

8 traveling public which uses roads, highways, and 

9 railways for the purposes of business and leisure; 

10 and 

11 (3) for their conscientious effort to improve 

12 safety, increase efficiency, and better the environ13 ment in communities throughout the United States.

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