Federal Transit Administrator Peter Rogoff emphasized the states' role in transit funding and administration of programs. Rogoff spoke about the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funding and the nearly 1,000 grants that have been obligated since the passage of the bill in February 2009. He also mentioned that all recovery grants will be processed by today, the transit obligation deadline.

Rogoff thanked the states and emphasized the importance of the state DOT transit divisions that implement programs for the elderly and disabled individuals as well as the rural transit program. These state-administered programs benefited greatly from recovery act funding, he said.

Intermodal cooperation was also a key point of Rogoff's speech. The Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant program was lauded by Rogoff, who said TIGER grants should be a model for future intermodal cooperation.

Transit highlights in the president's Fiscal Year 2011 budget include an 8 percent increase in funding for the State of Good Repair Initiative and an increase in funding for New Starts and Small Starts projects, Rogoff said. He noted there is now expanded criteria for New Starts projects including environmental benefits, community needs, and overall cost-effectiveness.

Rogoff concluded his speech by stating the need for a comprehensive transit safety bill. He spoke about the bill submitted by President Barack Obama to Congress in December. The legislation emphasizes safety oversight and a state of good repair. The bill includes the AASHTO's proposal to eliminate the unfunded mandate whereby states currently handle state safety oversight but are not provided with any federal funds to do so. This bill would allow the federal government to pay for 100 percent of staffing and training for state safety oversight needs but would also allow states to opt out and permit the federal government to take over transit safety oversight.

In his remarks, Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez said the United States needs a national freight strategy. One of the key priorities of the Obama administration is economic competitiveness and this clearly fits in, he said.

Mendez encouraged states to be innovative and use new technology as they move forward with projects this year. He mentioned one innovation to create a "safety edge" on highways.

"If you pave the side of the road at a 30-degree angle, drivers veering off the road won't over-correct," he said. Mendez used this example as some of the "low-hanging fruit" that could lead to smarter, but lower-cost solutions.

Federal Railroad Administrator Joe Szabo said the future of rail is all about "multimodalism, so we understand how the pieces fit together, how people and goods more seamlessly move across all modes."

FRA will soon offer guidance to the states as they develop their own state rail plans, Szabo said. One thing is key, he said: "As we move forward, we do no damage to our freight rail system, which is the envy of the world."