The American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) is voicing opposition to a proposal from the 1293 Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to tighten ozone standards. According to ARTBA, this proposal threatens to put hundreds of communities across America out of compliance with the Clean Air Act (CAA) and, in turn, places federal highway funds for those areas at risk. According to ARTBA, imposing new ozone standards that lead to highway improvements being stalled will be counter-productive. With nearly 42,000 people dying on US highways each year and many federally-funded highway improvements designed specifically to address safety issues, the changes proposed by the EPA could be counterproductive to improving public health. ARTBA added that jeopardising highway funding in new areas through implementation of the EPA's new recommendations would be self-defeating and impose obstacles to transportation improvements that can cut both harmful emissions and billions of dollars in wasted motor fuel caused by traffic congestion. The EPA's own data shows that the transportation sector has reduced ozone levels over the past several decade, a point that ARTBA highlights. Recent regulations to reduce sulphur content in fuels and emissions in heavy-duty diesel engines, trucks and highway vehicles will lead to even more improvements in air quality, claims ARTBA.
