Transportation Reform in Tennessee: Background
Hotbed for Hot Air
In recent years, Tennessee has been ranked among the worst states for environmental and public health problems associated with too much traffic and driving.
The four largest metro areas in Tennessee rank among the top 25 in the country for having the highest level of global warming emissions per capita, according to a 2008 report by the Brookings Institution with additional analysis by SELC. Nashville (#6), Knoxville (#10), Chattanooga (#13) and Memphis (#24) have some of the largest carbon footprints of any U.S. cities.
Metro Nashville has also been named the #1 sprawling city by USA Today. The region has one of the highest average vehicle miles traveled per person, per day in the country, according to the Federal Highway Administration. Land is being developed three times faster than the population is growing.
In recent years, many state and local governments have taken steps to improve energy efficiency, provide more transportation choices and curb carbon emissions. Although Tennessee has taken some initial, promising steps recently, it has lagged in this effort.
Paving the Way to More Pollution
Tennessee has seriously shortchanged its spending of federal transportation funds on projects that promote clean air, public safety, transportation choices and better road conditions, according to a 2003 report by the Surface Transportation Policy Project. Between 1992 and 2001, Tennessee received over $4.3 billion in surface transportation authorizations from the federal government for programs administered by the state. Of this amount, the report found that:
- 24% went to road or bridge repair - the second lowest rate spent on maintenance in the U.S.;
- 7% went to safety - barely half the national average; and
- 1% went to transit - among the lowest rates in the country and only one-fifth the national average.
It may be no surprise that the American Lung Association ranked all four of Tennessee's largest metro areas among the 25 most polluted in the country for ozone pollution.
Repairing TDOT
SELC is at the forefront of efforts to reform the Tennessee Department of Transportation. We serve on TDOT's Environmental Advisory Council and are helping the agency implement "context-sensitive" solutions to transportation needs, addressing both air quality and sprawl.
In addition, our work in the state legislature in 2008 helped defeat bills that would have allowed highways funded in part by private companies to avoid normal planning processes and undermine environmental review requirements.
