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rtc policy 101

Enhancements (TE).” Since 1992,

thou-

sands of trail building and enhancement

projects have been made possible through

these funds. Sections of the famous

Pinellas Trail in Florida, Chief Ladiga Trail

in Alabama and Olympic Discovery Trail

in Washington have all been funded in

part through TE/TAP funds.

Why it’s a legislative priority: “

The

Transportation Alternatives Program has

been the backbone of trail building in

the U.S. for nearly 25 years,” says Mills.

“The federal dollars not only have directly

helped to build most of our favorite

rail-trails, but they leverage many other

resources and have seeded a cultural shift

in which trail networks are now under-

stood as essential community assets.”

TE/TAP has been constantly under

attack by various members of Congress

over the years. RTC has mobilized to help

increase or protect TE/TAP funds in every

federal transportation bill since 1991—

including increasing TE in 1998, and

restoring it following an attack in the U.S.

House of Representatives in 2003.

In 2012, Congress reduced TE alloca-

tions in the federal transportation bill and

consolidated it into TAP with two other

programs: the Recreational Trails Program

and the Safe Routes to School program. In

2015, although some congressmen sought

to eliminate TAP, the legislation instead

made a symbolic structural change by

moving TAP from a standalone program

into a broad transportation program (as a

subprogram). The new legislation also gave

urban regional transportation agencies the

ability to transfer out half of their TAP

funds to other uses, representing a new

vulnerability for TAP. The program did see

an immediate increase from $820 million

to $835 million per year—and another

$15 million increase to $850 million per

year for the 2018 to 2020 fiscal years.

According to Mills, maintaining the

program intact was a real political victory

in a bitterly divided Congress, and RTC

remains dedicated to protecting and grow-

ing TAP going forward. However, the

marginal gains are inadequate to meet the

burgeoning national demand for active-

transportation funding, so RTC also is

working to grow and diversify the options

communities have to fund trails, cycle

tracks and sidewalks.

TIFIA: Building Active-

Transportation Networks

What it is:

The Transportation

Infrastructure Financing and Investment

Act (TIFIA) is a federal program—also

included in the federal transportation

bill—that provides low-interest loans,

lines of credit and loan guarantees for

transportation projects, including trails,

and biking and walking infrastructure.

How it’s currently distributed:

Via

an application process managed by the

U.S. Department of Transportation

Background:

The minimum thresh-

old for TIFIA loans has historically been

$50 million or more for urban/suburban

projects and $25 million for rural proj-

ects. In 2015, RTC successfully advo-

cated for improvements to the act in the

federal transportation bill that would

make TIFIA accessible to communi-

ties looking to build out their trail and

active-transportation networks.

In a nutshell—the changes to the act

included: 1) lowering the threshold to

$10 million for projects involving local

governments; 2) enabling projects to be

bundled together to reach the threshold;

3) permitting funds to be used to finance

State Infrastructure Banks, which can in

turn more easily finance rural projects;

4) streamlining the application process

for low-risk projects; and 5) allotting at

least $2 million per year for application

fee waivers for small projects.

Why it’s a legislative priority:

“We’re reaching a point in the trail

movement where people understand that

trails aren’t just ‘nice to have,’ but are

essential community assets,” says Leeann

Sinpatanasakul, advocacy coordinator

TC continues to pursue

investment in rail-trails at all

levels of government in the

U.S. to ensure these essential

assets are created and protected. As

the organization celebrates its 30th

anniversary in 2016,

Rails to Trails

magazine is taking a brief moment to

spotlight this work, which often takes a

backseat in our coverage of the American

rail-trail movement, but which has been

critical to its growth and evolution.

“Since the early days of RTC, the orga-

nization has worked tirelessly to ensure

adequate public investment in these essen-

tial pathways,” says Kevin Mills, senior

vice president of policy at RTC. “Today,

our work continues at the federal, state

and local levels to enable regions to build

the trail networks they need—to connect

people and places, and provide healthy

outdoor recreation for all.”

Here’s a quick look at RTC’s funding

priorities for the future and why they’re

important to America’s healthy trail

future. Learn more at

railstotrails.org

Transportation Alternatives

Program (TAP): Federal

Trail Funding

What it is:

To put it simply, it’s the single

largest federal funding source for trails in

the U.S. The current pot stands at $835

million dollars per year, making up only

about 1.5 percent of federal transportation

spending.

How it’s currently distributed:

Fifty

percent is allocated to each state’s depart-

ment of transportation who can choose

priority projects. The other 50 percent is

split proportionally to: urban areas of more

than 200,000 people via metropolitan

planning organizations (who decide prior-

ity projects for themselves); urban areas of

5,001 to 200,000 people; and areas with

5,000 or less people.

Background:

RTC helped ensure the

inclusion of the program in the 1991 fed-

eral transportation bill as “Transportation

nity, those communities that are able

to take advantage of TIFIA financ-

ing can also use innovative ways to

pay back the funds. For example, the

Chicago Riverwalk is paying back its

TIFIA loan over a period of 35 years

with funds raised from rent and fees

from tour boats, private boat docking,

charter boats, leases, sponsorships and

advertising.

RTC now has plans to educate trail

advocates on how to take advantage of

this new tool, reach out to local commu-

nities who want to build their trail net-

works and, over the next couple of years,

aid communities who are applying for

TIFIA credit assistance for the first time.

RTC’s State

and Local Initiative

What it is:

A focused effort by RTC to

encourage more investment at the state

and local levels in balanced transporta-

tion systems that include trails, and bik-

ing and walking infrastructure.

Why it’s a legislative priority:

“Traditionally, states and localities

have focused their limited transporta-

tion budgets on road development.

Unfortunately, TAP has not grown suf-

ficiently to keep up with the demand

for more active-transportation infra-

structure,” says Drew Dupuy, RTC’s

manager of policy outreach. To make up

for the declining buying power of federal

transportation programs—trail

builders are innovating to

accelerate the completion of

trail networks—particularly at

the state and local level, where

there is the greatest motivation

to get networks in place.

RTC is taking active steps

to establish partnerships with

more state and local groups to

share best practices, such as the

use of gas taxes, to help fund

biking and walking infrastruc-

ture—a strategy traditionally

used by many states only to

fund road development.

RTC is also working with partners at

the state level to help advocate for more

state-funded active-transportation pro-

grams, like California’s massive Active

Transportation Program, established

in 2013, or Florida’s Water and Land

Legacy Conservation program, passed

in 2014—both of which are expected to

allocate hundreds of millions of dollars

to active transportation projects over the

next 20 years.

“Many people can’t or choose not to

drive,” says Mills. “Our goal is to ensure

states and localities are not just invest-

ing in one mode of transportation, but

in balanced transportation systems that

serve the mobility and recreation needs

of everyone in their communities.”

RTC has been fighting

to grow and protect

federal funding

support for trails and

walking and biking

infrastructure for

almost 30 years.

for RTC. “We want to help communi-

ties build connected biking and walking

networks, and they need funding to

make that happen.”

According to Sinpatanasakul, bicycle

and pedestrian projects typically cost

much less than the previous $50 million

threshold; but, in many cases, much

more than what is available through

TAP funding. Additionally, she says that

the long and complicated application

process for TIFIA funds—which can

require several lawyers and consultants

to complete—has served as a barrier for

many communities.

“These reforms to TIFIA will give

communities of all sizes opportunities

to access TIFIA funds, which will help

them to connect trails into seamless net-

works and create safe routes for people

to walk and bike on an accelerated

schedule,” she states.

While Sinpatanasakul says TIFIA

may not be right for every commu-

Show Me the (Trail) $$

ADRIAN CABRERO

RTC/JIM BROWN

ERVIN VICE