I 
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 3743
To improve the safety of rural roads. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 28, 2004
Mr. NEY (for himself, Mr. HOLDEN, Mr. BOEHLERT, and Mr. ISAKSON) intro-
duced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Trans-
portation and Infrastructure 
A BILL 
To improve the safety of rural roads.
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 ‘‘Rural Transportation 
Act’’. 
SEC. 2. RURAL ROAD SAFETY PROGRAM. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that it is in the vital 
interest of the Nation that a rural road safety program 
be established to ensure that the safety of the traveling 
public is enhanced on rural two-lane highways.
(b) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary shall establish 
and implement a rural road safety program in accordance 
with this section. 
(c) APPORTIONMENTS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—On October 1 of each fiscal 
year, the Secretary shall apportion to each State to 
carry out this section an amount in the ratio of the 
percentage of the centerline mileage of two-lane 
roads in rural areas functionally classified as minor 
and major collectors and arterials in each State 
bears to the total centerline mileage of two-lane 
roads in rural areas functionally classified as minor 
and major collectors and arterials in all the States. 
(2) ALLOCATION
OF
APPORTIONED
FUNDS.—
Within each State, funds for the rural road safety 
program for each fiscal year shall be allocated 
among State, county, city, and other levels of gov-
ernment commensurate with each entity’s ownership 
ratio of eligible two-lane road mileage of two-lane 
roads in rural areas functionally classified as minor 
and major collectors and arterials. 
(d) LOCATION OF PROJECTS.—Funds authorized to 
carry out this section shall be available for expenditure 
only for activities described in subsection (h).
(e) OBLIGATION OF FUNDS.—Funds authorized to be 
appropriated to carry out this section shall be available 
for obligation in the same manner and the same extent 
as if such funds were apportioned under section 104(b) 
of title 23, United States Code, except that the Secretary 
is authorized to waive provisions that the Secretary con-
siders inconsistent with the purposes of this section. 
(f) COST SHARING.—The Federal share of a project 
under this section shall be 80 percent of the total cost 
for such project. 
(g) TRANSFERABILITY.—Notwithstanding any other 
provision of law no portion of a State’s apportionment al-
located for the rural road safety program may be trans-
ferred to any other apportionment of the State for such 
fiscal year. 
(h) USE OF FUNDS.—A State that receives an appor-
tionment under this section may use funds—
(1) to improve horizontal and vertical align-
ment; 
(2) to eliminate wheel lane rutting, increase 
skid resistance, and smooth roadways; 
(3) to improve sight distances; 
(4) to widen lanes and shoulders; 
(5) to install dedicated turn lanes;
(6) to install and upgrade guardrails, traffic 
barriers, crash cushions, protective devices, and 
rumblestrips; 
(7) to install traffic and safety lights, improve 
signage and pavement markings; and 
(8) to implement other safety activities des-
ignated by the Secretary. 
(i) PROGRAM.—Not later than 180 days after the 
date of enactment of this Act, each State that receives 
an apportionment under this section shall conduct and 
systematically maintain an engineering survey of all two-
lane rural roads classified as minor and major collectors 
and minor arterials—
(1) to identify dangerous locations, sections, 
and elements, including roadside obstacles and un-
marked or poorly marked roads, which may con-
stitute a danger to motorists, bicyclists, pedestrians, 
impaired, and ‘‘older’’ drivers; 
(2) to assign priorities for the correction of 
such locations, sections, and elements; and 
(3) establish and implement a schedule of 
projects for improvement of such roads. 
(j) EVALUATION.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall establish 
an evaluation process approved by the Secretary to
analyze and assess results achieved by safety im-
provement projects carried out in accordance with 
the procedures and criteria established by this sec-
tion. 
(2) PRIORITIES.—Such evaluation process shall 
develop cost-benefit data for various types of correc-
tions and treatments, which shall be used in setting 
priorities for safety improvement projects. 
(k) REPORTING.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Each State shall report to 
the Secretary not later than December 30 of each 
year, regarding the progress of implementing safety 
improvement projects for danger elimination and the 
effectiveness of such improvements. 
(2) STATE
ASSESSMENT.—Each State report 
shall contain an assessment of the cost of, and safe-
ty benefits derived from, the various means and 
methods used to mitigate or eliminate dangers and 
the previous and subsequent accident experience at 
dangerous locations. 
(3) SECRETARY’S
REPORT.—The Secretary 
shall submit a report to the Committee on Environ-
ment and Public Works of the Senate and the Com-
mittee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the 
House of Representatives not later than April 1 of
each year regarding the progress of the States in im-
plementing the rural road safety program. The re-
port shall—
(A) include the number of projects under-
taken, their distribution by cost range, road 
system, means and methods used, the previous 
and subsequent accident experience at improved 
locations and a cost-benefit analysis; and 
(B) analyze and evaluate each State’s pro-
gram, identify any State found not to be in 
compliance with the schedule of improvements 
required by subsection (a), and include rec-
ommendations for future implementation of the 
rural road safety program. 
(l) DEFINITIONS.—In this section—
(1) the term ‘‘rural area’’ means all areas of 
the State not included in urban areas as defined in 
section 101(a)(29); 
(2) the term ‘‘rural road’’ means all roads in 
rural areas; and 
(3) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 
of Transportation.
(m) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS RURAL 
ROAD SAFETY PROGRAM.—To carry out the rural road 
safety program under this section there are authorized to
be appropriated $1,000,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2004 through 2009. 
SEC. 3. DIVISION BETWEEN CERTAIN AREAS. 
Section 105(c)(2) of title 23, United States Code, is 
amended by striking ‘‘paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) and 
inserting ‘‘paragraphs (1) and (2)’’. 
SEC. 4. SPECIAL RULE FOR AREAS LESS THAN 5,000 POPU-
LATION. 
Section 133(d)(3)(B) of title 23, United States Code, 
is amended—
(1) by inserting ‘‘for roads functionally classi-
fied as minor arterials and major and minor collec-
tors’’ after ‘‘5,000)’’; and 
(2) by striking ‘‘110’’ and inserting ‘‘150’’. 
SEC. 5. HIGHWAY BRIDGE REPLACEMENT AND REHABILI-
TATION. 
Section 144 of title 23, United States Code, is 
amended—
(1) in subsection (e)—
(A) by striking ‘‘Funds’’ and inserting the 
following: 
‘‘(1) STATE APPORTIONMENT.—Funds’’; and 
(B) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(2) 
DIVISION
BETWEEN
STATE, 
CITIES, 
TOWNS, AND COUNTIES.—Funds apportioned to each
State shall be spent on bridges owned by the State 
and local governments based on the cost of deficient 
bridges at each level of government divided by the 
total cost of deficient bridges in that State.’’. 
(2) in subsection (g)(3)—
(A) by striking ‘‘15 percent’’ and inserting 
‘‘25 percent’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘1987 through 2003’’ and 
inserting ‘‘2004 through 2009’’. 
SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 
Section 504(b) of title 23, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(3) AUTHORIZATION
OF
APPROPRIATIONS.—
There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 
this subsection $20,000,000 for each of fiscal years 
2004 through 2009.’’. 
SEC. 7. STATE PLANNING AND RESEARCH. 
Section 505 of title 23, United States Code, is 
amended—
(1) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘Two percent’’ 
and inserting ‘‘two and 1⁄2 percent’’; 
(2) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as 
(d) and (e), respectively; and 
(3) by adding after subsection (b) the following:
‘‘(c) LOCAL DISTRIBUTION.—Not less than 20 per-
cent of the funds subject to subsection (a) that are appor-
tioned to a State for a fiscal year shall be distributed to 
local governments, local planning agencies, including 
multi-jurisdictional rural planning agencies governed by 
local officials, and other transportation bodies responsible 
for transportation planning in nonmetropolitan areas to 
be used for the development of the statewide transpor-
tation improvement program.’’. 
SEC. 8. APPALACHIAN REGIONAL COMMISSION. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION
OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 
are authorized to be appropriated from the Highway Trust 
Fund (other than the Mass Transit Account) for the Ap-
palachian development highway system program under 
section 14501 of title 40, United States Code, 
$611,800,000 for each of fiscal years 2004 through 2009. 
(b) APPORTIONMENT.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), the Secretary shall apportion funds made 
available by subsection (a) for fiscal years 2004 
through 2009 among the States based on the latest 
available cost to complete estimate for the Appa-
lachian development highway system under section 
14501 title 40, United States Code.
(2) LOCAL DEVELOPMENT DISTRICTS.—Before 
apportioning amounts to the States under paragraph 
(1), the Secretary shall make available $11,800,000 
to be equally divided among local development dis-
tricts (as such term is defined in section 14102 of 
title 40, United States Code) to carry out com-
prehensive regional transportation planning activi-
ties, including activities related to linking transpor-
tation and economic development investment within 
the region. 
(c) APPLICABILITY
OF TITLE 23.—Funds made 
available by section 1101(a)(6) of the Transportation Eq-
uity Act for the 21st Century for the Appalachian develop-
ment highway system shall be available for obligation in 
the same manner as if such funds were apportioned under 
chapter 1 of title 23, United States Code; except that the 
Federal share of the cost of any project under this section 
shall be determined in accordance with section 14501 of 
title 40, United States Code, and such funds shall be avail-
able to construct highways and access roads under such 
section and shall remain available until expended.
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