I 
119TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7301 
To provide for the development of transportation demand management 
strategies, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 30, 2026 
Ms. STRICKLAND introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 
A BILL 
To provide for the development of transportation demand 
management strategies, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Maximizing Transpor-
tation Efficiency Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds that— 
(1) transportation demand management (as de-
fined in section 101(a) of title 23, United States 
Code) (referred to in this section as ‘‘TDM’’) in-
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creases the efficiency of the existing transportation 
infrastructure of the United States, provides greater 
access to jobs and services, and strengthens commu-
nities and families across the country; 
(2) compared to their urban counterparts, rural 
communities have a disproportionate number of el-
derly and disabled residents, elevated poverty levels, 
and limited access to essential services like schools, 
healthcare facilities, stores, and banks, and the im-
plementation of TDM strategies can help to address 
these disparities; 
(3) TDM can provide transportation options to 
those in rural communities who lack access to a car; 
(4) according to the Bureau of Transportation 
Statistics, rural households spend more on transpor-
tation than urban households; 
(5) limited transit options in rural areas in-
crease dependence on owning a vehicle; 
(6) in 2024, traffic congestion was estimated to 
cost the United States $74,000,000,000; 
(7) TDM works to lower the cost of congestion 
by increasing efficiency in the transportation system; 
(8) other modes of transportation are well-suit-
ed to rural communities, particularly carpooling and 
vanpooling; 
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(9) carpool and vanpool systems are essential 
for helping employees reach their worksites and resi-
dents access essential services in rural locations; and 
(10) implementing TDM is a cost-effective use 
of transportation dollars. 
SEC. 3. TRANSPORTATION DEMAND MANAGEMENT. 
(a) DEFINITION
OF
TRANSPORTATION
DEMAND 
MANAGEMENT.—Section 101(a) of title 23, United States 
Code, is amended— 
(1) by redesignating paragraphs (32) through 
(36) as paragraphs (33) through (37), respectively; 
and 
(2) by inserting after paragraph (31) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(32) TRANSPORTATION
DEMAND
MANAGE-
MENT.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘transpor-
tation demand management’ means the use of 
strategies to inform and encourage travelers to 
maximize the efficiency of a transportation sys-
tem, leading to improved mobility, reduced con-
gestion, and improved air quality, including 
strategies that use planning, programs, oper-
ations, policies, marketing, communications, in-
centives, pricing, data, and technology. 
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‘‘(B) 
INCLUSIONS.—Transportation 
de-
mand management may include— 
‘‘(i) encouraging employers to offer 
qualified transportation fringe benefits (as 
defined in section 132(f) of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986); 
‘‘(ii) incentives, subsidies, and use of 
game-like 
elements 
such 
as 
points, 
leaderboards, and challenges to encourage 
engagement and participation in desired 
transportation choices; 
‘‘(iii) appropriate pricing of parking, 
tolls, transit, and other options; 
‘‘(iv) carpooling and vanpooling; 
‘‘(v) trip planning and ridematching; 
‘‘(vi) the implementation of State laws 
and local ordinances relating to transpor-
tation demand management, commute trip 
reduction, or other similar regulations; 
‘‘(vii) parking management; 
‘‘(viii) use of high occupancy vehicle 
(HOV) and high occupancy toll (HOT) 
lanes; 
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‘‘(ix) promotion and support of tele-
commuting, remote, and hybrid work 
schedules; 
‘‘(x) marketing, outreach, and edu-
cation to inform people about options and 
shift behavior; 
‘‘(xi) support of micromobility and pe-
destrian infrastructure; 
‘‘(xii) active transportation (as defined 
in section 11529(l) of the Infrastructure 
Investment and Jobs Act (23 U.S.C. 217 
note; Public Law 117–58)); and 
‘‘(xiii) other activities that will dis-
perse the demand on the transportation 
system.’’. 
(b) CONGESTION MITIGATION AND AIR QUALITY IM-
PROVEMENT PROGRAM.—Section 149(b)(7) of title 23, 
United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by adding ‘‘or’’ after the semicolon at the 
end; 
(2) by striking ‘‘program shifts’’ and inserting 
the following: ‘‘program— 
‘‘(A) shifts’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
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‘‘(B) is for the purpose of implementing 
transportation demand management strate-
gies;’’. 
(c) NATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT ASSIST-
ANCE.—Section 6701 of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (d)— 
(A) in paragraph (1)— 
(i) in subparagraph (E)(ii), by strik-
ing ‘‘or’’ at the end; 
(ii) in subparagraph (F), by striking 
‘‘and’’ at the end and inserting ‘‘or’’; and 
(iii) by adding at the end the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(G) for the purpose of implementing 
transportation demand management (as defined 
in section 101(a) of title 23) strategies; and’’; 
and 
(B) in paragraph (2), in the matter pre-
ceding subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘for any 
project other than a project described in para-
graph (1)(G),’’ before ‘‘the eligible project 
costs’’; and 
(2) in subsection (h)(1)— 
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(A) in subparagraph (A), by striking 
‘‘and’’ at the end; 
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking the 
period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(C) activities related to the implementa-
tion of transportation demand management (as 
defined in section 101(a) of title 23) strate-
gies.’’. 
(d) LOCAL AND REGIONAL PROJECT ASSISTANCE.— 
Section 6702(a)(3) of title 49, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in subparagraph (G), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 
the end; 
(2) by redesignating subparagraph (H) as sub-
paragraph (I); and 
(3) by inserting after subparagraph (G) the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘(H) a project to implement transportation 
demand management (as defined in section 
101(a) of title 23) strategies; and’’. 
(e) STRENGTHENING MOBILITY AND REVOLUTION-
IZING
TRANSPORTATION
GRANT
PROGRAM.—Section 
25005(e) of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act 
(23 U.S.C. 502 note; Public Law 117–58) is amended— 
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‘‘(B) a metropolitan planning organization 
(as defined in section 134(b) of title 23, United 
States Code) serving 1 or more rural areas; 
‘‘(C) a unit of local government; 
‘‘(D) a Tribal government; 
‘‘(E) a public transit agency; 
‘‘(F) a regional transportation planning or-
ganization; and 
‘‘(G) a nonprofit organization or institu-
tion of higher education engaged in rural trans-
portation planning and commuter service pro-
grams, including transportation management 
associations. 
‘‘(3) ELIGIBLE
ACTIVITIES.—Funds from a 
grant under this subsection may be used for— 
‘‘(A) development of transportation de-
mand management plans and policies to opti-
mize rural transportation networks; 
‘‘(B) marketing and public outreach cam-
paigns to encourage shared mobility, transit 
use, and alternative transportation modes; 
‘‘(C) data collection and analysis to evalu-
ate rural travel patterns and assess congestion 
reduction strategies; 
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‘‘(D) implementation of innovative trans-
portation demand management strategies to en-
courage shared and alternative modes of trans-
portation, including— 
‘‘(i) vanpooling programs; 
‘‘(ii) carpooling programs; 
‘‘(iii) employer-based or local or Trib-
al government commuting incentive pro-
grams; 
‘‘(iv) real-time traveler information 
systems; 
‘‘(v) smart rural transportation hubs; 
‘‘(vi) intelligent transportation system 
applications to enhance rural mobility; and 
‘‘(vii) deploying trip-planning applica-
tions, mobility-as-a-service platforms, and 
behavioral incentives; 
‘‘(E) coordination of public-private part-
nerships to leverage technology solutions for 
rural travel efficiency; and 
‘‘(F) costs associated with managing and 
operating transportation demand management 
strategies, including staff salaries. 
‘‘(4) UNUTILIZED FUNDS.—For any fiscal year, 
if the Secretary determines that the amount set 
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aside under paragraph (1) will not be fully utilized 
for grants under this subsection, the Secretary shall 
use the unutilized amounts to provide grants for 
other projects under the program.’’. 
SEC. 5. CONGESTION RELIEF PROGRAM. 
Section 129(d) of title 23, United States Code, is 
amended— 
(1) in paragraph (1)(A)— 
(A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘with a popu-
lation of more than 1,000,000’’; and 
(B) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘with a pop-
ulation of more than 1,000,000’’; 
(2) in paragraph (5)(D), by striking ‘‘A grant’’ 
and inserting ‘‘Except as provided in paragraph (8), 
a grant’’; and 
(3) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(8) SMALL PROJECT SET-ASIDE.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Of the amounts made 
available for the program for each fiscal year, 
the Secretary shall use $20,000,000 to make 
grants to eligible entities for projects under the 
program with an estimated cost that is— 
‘‘(i) not less than $500,000; and 
‘‘(ii) not more than $10,000,000. 
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‘‘(B) UNUTILIZED FUNDS.—For any fiscal 
year, if the Secretary determines that the 
amount set aside under subparagraph (A) will 
not be fully utilized for grants described in that 
subparagraph, the Secretary shall use the un-
utilized amounts to provide grants for other 
projects under the program.’’. 
Æ 
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