Public / Private Enterprise Initiatives Flashcards
How are initiatives such as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law impacting investors, owners and operators of transit infrastructure systems?
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provides incentives for investment in green propulsion methods, power and grid infrastructure to build electric vehicle charging networks and investments in public transit. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has the potential to positively impact nearly every stakeholder involved in transportation, given the largest allocation of funding within the legislation is dedicated to transportation. This is an important consideration for owners and operators who want access to the funding under the legislation whereby 76% of funding gets delivered directly to states, localities or to specific federal agencies for predetermined activities. Investors, owners, and operators of transit infrastructure systems need to understand how to access that funding, which is primarily focused on highways, roads, bridges, and rail.
How is the IRA impacting investors?
While the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is focused on grants, the Inflation Reduction Act (“IRA”) is another critical piece of transportation legislation that is facilitating the energy transition in transportation. The Inflation Reduction Act offers consumer incentives and manufacturing subsidies for alternative energy vehicles and charging infrastructure. All-in-all, the combination of the BIL and the IRA have created measurable tailwinds for investment in new, more efficient, and lower emitting transportation equipment.
What is the EU Green Deal?
In Europe, similar legislation has been enacted through the EU Green Deal, which sets stricter standards on car pollution, emphasizes transportation of freight by rail or water, stipulates effective road pricing with no subsidies for fossil fuels and promotes investment in automated mobility and smart traffic management systems.
What much has the US earmarked via the IRA and BIL?
The U.S. has earmarked approximately $300 billion to support transportation investments and green technologies through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act.
How are intermodal systems such as roads, airports, public transit and rideshare working together to bring more options to more people?
Collaboration between the public and private sector is critical to transform and transition existing intermodal transportation and mobility systems. Intermodal transportation, which includes the integration of different modes of transportation, can promote cleaner, sustainable transportation by (i) enhancing accessibility, (ii) improving efficiency, and (iii) utilizing clean energy.
How is public and private enterprise working together to enhance accessibility in transport?
System level community and urban planning is critical to enhancing access to sustainable transportation. The design of cities, towns, and transportation infrastructure, including highways, railways, and airports, impact travel and transport demand. Optimizing travel patterns, through ensuring availability of transport options, can significantly reduce transportation emissions. This includes ensuring that convenient transit networks that offer multiple modes of transportation (i.e. rail, bus, rideshare), are strategically located near social, work, and essential service centers.
How is public and private enterprise working together to enhance efficiency in transport?
Transportation efficiency can be improved by expanding the availability and connectivity to more effective travel options, by increasing the frequency of mass transit or extending the routes of various modes of transportation (i.e. expanding rail or bus routes, connecting public transit to airports), thus decreasing the need for inefficient vehicles (i.e. single-occupancy vehicles). Additionally, the integration of first or last mile transportation services and technology, including rideshare and mobility hubs, have transformed and helped optimize the movement of goods and people.
How is public and private enterprise working together to utilize clean energy?
Different sustainable fuels will be utilized to meet the specific requirements of the various modes of transportation, including electric, hydrogen, and other low-carbon sustainable liquid fuels. To support the deployment of cleaner vehicle combustion technologies, both the public and private sector are focused on installing electric charging and alternative fueling stations along major roadways and freight transport hubs, to enable viable adoption.
Each year, trillions of dollars are invested in transport infrastructure. Is this enough? What will it take to move the transport infrastructure industry closer to net-zero?
Never have we seen more financial and intellectual resources dedicated to this environmental imperative. For example, we have observed promising support from the Biden administration via the U.S. National Blueprint for Transportation Decarbonization. There is also continued recognition from investors to invest and decarbonize heavy assets (i.e. reaching net zero across the entire economy, not just portfolio math). The combination of investment from governments, profit-motivated private capital sources and regulation will continue to take us closer to the zero-emissions transportation objective.
