Presidential Documents

26711

Federal Register

Vol. 63, No. 93

May 14, 1998

Title 3—

The President

Proclamation 7094 of May 8, 1998

National Defense Transportation Day and National Transportation Week, 1998

By the President of the United States of America

A Proclamation

America’s transportation system is the finest in the world. The web of

streets, highways, bridges, and railroads that crisscross our Nation and our

complex network of shipping lanes and air routes keep us connected to

one another and the world. They enable us to move people and goods

swiftly and efficiently across the country and around the globe and fuel

the engine of our robust economy. Whether building subways, constructing

new highways, or improving airplane safety, the dedicated and hardworking

men and women of our national transportation system keep America moving.

As we look forward to a new century, we must build on our record of

achievement. As always, our first priority must be the safety of those who

use our Nation’s transportation system. We have already made great progress

in improving highway safety—the traffic fatality rate today is two-and-ahalf times less than it was 30 years ago. However, by increasing seat belt

use, ensuring that our children are properly secured in our vehicles, and

lowering the threshold for drunk driving to a blood alcohol concentration

of .08, we can further reduce the number of traffic accidents and the harm

they cause.

We also must strive to keep our Nation’s transportation system secure and

our borders safe from terrorists and drug traffickers. Today, through improved

training techniques and advanced technology, we have increased security

at our airports, and programs such as the Coast Guard’s Operation Frontier

Shield have helped to seize tons of illegal drugs and abort numerous drug

smuggling attempts.

While recognizing the many benefits we derive from our transportation

system, we also acknowledge the need to use and develop it responsibly

to ensure the protection of our environment. We are making progress in

this goal as well: we have funded many projects to improve transit services

and accommodations for bicyclists and pedestrians; we are turning historic

railroad terminals into multimodal transportation centers; and funds from

transportation programs have helped to support wetlands restoration projects

and have aided communities in planning both transit projects and sustainable

development. We must build on these efforts by also working to reduce

the pollutants and greenhouse gases that our transportation system creates.

Recognizing the need for safety, security, and environmental stewardship

in America’s transportation system, we also must invest in our transportation

infrastructure. Together with the Congress, my Administration has provided

funding for construction projects in communities across the country, creating

700,000 new transportation-related jobs in the last 5 years. Our fiscal 1999

budget proposal for transportation infrastructure is 42 percent higher than

the average level of investment from 1990 to 1993. The 240 trade agreements

we have signed since 1993, including 27 ‘‘open skies’’ aviation agreements

in the last 3 years, have opened markets around the world for American

products. America’s transportation system will enable us to seize these unprecedented opportunities for trade and economic growth.
26712 Federal Register / Vol. 63, No. 93 /Thursday, May 14, 1998 / Presidential Documents

In recognition of the importance of our Nation’s transportation system to

our national security and economic success, and in gratitude to the outstanding men and women who ensure its continued excellence, the United States

Congress, by joint resolution approved May 16, 1957 (36 U.S.C. 160), has

designated the third Friday in May of each year as ‘‘National Defense Transportation Day’’ and, by joint resolution approved May 14, 1962 (36 U.S.C.

166), declared that the week in which that Friday falls be designated ‘‘National Transportation Week.’’

NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the United States

of America, do hereby proclaim Friday, May 15, 1998, as National Defense

Transportation Day and May 10 through May 16, 1998, as National Transportation Week. I urge all Americans to observe these occasions with appropriate

ceremonies and activities, giving due recognition to the individuals and

organizations that build, operate, and maintain this country’s modern transportation systems.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighth day

of May, in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and ninety-eight, and

of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred

[FR Doc. 98–13041

Filed 5–13–98; 8:45 am]

Billing code 3195–01–P

and twenty-second.

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