Cambridge Systematics Announces Release of Bipartisan Policy Center Report on Policy Options to Address Climate Impacts on Transportation (December 18, 2009)
Cambridge Systematics, Inc. is pleased to announce the publication of Transportation Adaption to Global Climate Change, a white paper produced for the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) to inform Congress, the Administration, and other policy-makers about policy options at the Federal level that will ensure a robust transportation system in the face of a changing climate.
The report was developed to focus more attention on the effects of climate change on infrastructure and the options for policy action. While the adaptations that will be required to deal with climate change for some sectors already have been studied in depth, the same can not be said of transportation infrastructure. Rising sea levels, greater weather variability, and more extreme weather events like hurricanes, permafrost thawing, and melting Arctic sea ice are just some of the important changes that will impact transportation networks and infrastructure. Coastal infrastructure is particularly vulnerable: nearly half of the U.S. population lives within fifty miles of the coast, and many roads, rail lines, and airports were built at or near water’s edge to take advantage of available right-of-way and land. Increasingly intense storm activity and surges, exacerbated by rising sea levels, are putting an ever-increasing range of this coastal infrastructure at risk.
The costs of these climate impacts will run into the billions of dollars. Costs will be highly variable — extreme events will incur large capital costs in very short periods of time, while other impacts (such as sea level rise) will require investments spread out over long periods, integrated with capital replacement cycles. Short-term efforts to increase the transportation system’s resilience by adapting to projected climate changes will reduce these long-term costs from climate change.
The white paper identifies principles and key areas for Federal policy action that can be implemented through several different vehicles, including the anticipated surface transportation authorization, climate and energy legislation, and executive action. Recommended areas for policy development include climate impacts and adaptation research, transportation planning processes, project development, design and engineering considerations, and Federal programming and funding processes.
About the Bipartisan Policy Center
The BPC is a non-profit organization established in 2007 by former Senate Majority Leaders Howard Baker, Tom Daschle, Bob Dole, and George Mitchell to develop and promote solutions that can attract public support and political momentum in order to achieve real progress on national policy issues. To learn more about the BPC, visit www.bipartisanpolicy.org.
About Cambridge Systematics, Inc.
Cambridge Systematics specializes in transportation and is a recognized leader in the development and implementation of innovative policy and planning solutions, objective analysis and technology applications. Further information can be found at www.camsys.com.
For more information, contact:
Robert Hyman, Associate
Cambridge Systematics, Inc.
(301) 347-0100
rhyman@camsys.com
Ashley Clark, Deputy Press Secretary
Bipartisan Policy Center
(202) 637-1456