States Take the Reins as Biden-Harris Green Initiatives Crumble
In what turned out to be a rude awakening during an annual bicycle advocates gathering this month in Washington, D.C., attendees’ breakfast was interrupted by an alarming email: the halt on federal grant funding for bike lanes, courtesy of President Trump’s transportation department. The intention, it seems, is to put the brakes on the green energy pivots originally lauded by former President Joe Biden, such as transit developments, recreational trails, and bicycle infrastructure.
In stark contrast to the Biden-Harris administration’s worn-out green initiatives, several states have taken matters into their own hands. Despite their past affiliations with Biden’s so-called progressive projects, Pennsylvania, California, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, and New York have united under the banner of the Clean Rides Network, carrying a new torch for sound, effective environmental action.
The Clean Rides Network is gaining traction in multiple state assemblies this year, spearheading environmental transportation projects they insist the federal government has recklessly abandoned. It’s intriguing how they deem these changes as ‘urgent’. It’s a suggestive reminder of the dubious urgency peddled in the mainstream narrative.
In a misplaced effort to champion the environment further, Colorado adopted what appears to be one of Clean Rides Network’s pivotal strategies despite not being a founding member. In 2021, Colorado’s Governor, Jared Polis, committed to significantly slashing the state’s greenhouse gas emissions, employing a startlingly impulsive approach to speed up the process.
The approach launched by Colorado instigated a shockingly disproportionate policy. Whenever a project potentially increasing vehicle traffic such as new highways receives funding from the state’s transportation department, an equal-magnitude environmental offset project must be pursued. Following this policy, the state proceeded to cancel two major highway expansion plans.
As an outcome, these savings from canceled projects were channelled to overshoot an intercity bus service. This service became a trendy travel means for urban dwellers and tourists visiting ski resorts. While such steps may likely please climate change enthusiasts urging for direct action, their overall practicality as balanced transportation solutions remains questionable.
The Colorado approach quickly gained traction in the east, with Minnesota conforming and implementing a similar rule to neutralize greenhouse emissions. Other Clean Rides states, including Maryland which recently passed its Colorado-inspired law, are in the pipeline with similar proposals for this session.
In attempting to sell the law to her peers, Delegate Shelly Hettleman highlighted less the environmental merits and more the economic advantages. A research conducted by the Colorado transportation department forecasts a potential saving of $40 billion via improved air quality, increased road safety, and less congested traffic – all these fanciful projections paint a too-good-to-be-true image.
Meanwhile, lawmakers in the Clean Rides states of Illinois and Massachusetts face resistance as they strive to enact similar proposals. Business leaders, road construction proponents, and common-sense individuals rightly deem this another unsound legislative attempt, not grounded in real science, and one that would postpone necessary renovations to our decaying transportation infrastructure in Illinois.
Though the Clean Rides Network is primarily driven by Democrats, the network claims that conservative states too have shown interest in considering these topics. Economic issues continue to reign supreme with transport costs ranking second to housing in consumer costs. It appears the ever-increasing car ownership costs have conveniently escaped the attention of our leaders.
In another misguided leap toward ‘progress’, Virginia uses a scoring scale for potential transportation projects, taking into account safety, congestion relief, and purported environmental impacts. Meanwhile, Utah sets forth an ambitious transit scheme for the rapidly expanding state, and Montana introduces land use and zoning reforms aimed at rendering cities more walkable.
Even with these developments, one could argue that states are only reconsidering some policy aspects rather than taking genuine steps towards progress. It’s fortunate we live in a country where states possess autonomy over their transportation systems. Effectively, this grants them the liberty to sidestep the federal government’s often misinformed stance on environment and transportation.
Despite the questionable quality of these actions, it demonstrates at least one thing: states can, and evidently will move to secure their own futures, in their own ways. This includes how they want their transportation systems to evolve. Perhaps there’s more reason to trust these independent movements, even with their questionable tactics, over the overhyped green ventures peddled by the Biden-Harris administration.