Addressing the National Freight Advisory Committee (NFAC) recently, Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA) announced plans to introduce legislation aimed at improving freight mobility through strategic planning and investment. The Senator is crafting the bill, in part, by reviewing recommendations put forward by the NFAC to the U.S. Department of Transportation regarding the development of the National Freight Strategic Plan. “Senator Maria Cantwell has been a stalwart freight advocate since her election to Congress. Her continued leadership is appreciated by the Coalition for America’s Gateways and Trade Corridors and we commend her for continuing this campaign by developing legislation that will encompass both strategic freight planning and investment. We look forward to continued work with the Senator, knowing that like our Coalition, she will not settle for an underfunded and underappreciated multimodal freight system.” In her comments before the NFAC concerning America’s “freight imperative,” Senator Cantwell stated her intention to release a bill that would do the following:
  • Streamline permitting for multimodal freight projects.
  • Require strong, multimodal freight plans and local freight advisory committees in all 50 states.
  • Invest in multimodal freight projects at key bottlenecks and critical “first -and-last-mile connectors” on critical trade corridors.
  • Give USDOT the resources it needs for advanced multimodal freight flow research to ensure we are investing in the right places.