While the federal government provides the fi- nancial aid, the states do the work of constructing and improving the interstate highways. Once the work has been completed, the interstate roads be- long to the state or local governments, which have the responsibility of maintaining them.
Today the Federal Highway Administration oversees federal highways and their funding. The FHWA also applies federal safety standards to trucks and buses and does planning and research on highway construction and maintenance. The FHWA’s main job, however, is to administer the massive federal-aid highway program that sup- ports the construction and upkeep of about 25 percent of the nation’s roads.
National Highway System Since 1995 the Federal Highway Administration has succeeded in completing 161,000 miles of highway in the National Highway System (NHS) and has moved on to other transportation needs. These include keeping up with increasing demand on existing highways, maintaining road and bridge condi- tions, and reducing traffic fatalities and congestion.
Mass Transit The traffic helicopter seldom broadcasts good news for city dwellers. The streets and highways of large and small cities are clogged daily with automobile traffic, and urban planners
Could the urban transportation problem be solved with better mass transit systems such as subways, commuter railroads, and bus lines? When properly operated, mass transit can transport more people than individual automobiles and help to reduce congestion and air pollution. Beginning in the 1960s, the Urban Mass Transit Administra- tion (UMTA) administered federal grant pro- grams aimed at improving such transit systems in urban areas. The federal government continues to help cities cope with the growing need for better mass transit systems as a substitute for the auto- mobile. The government also helps fund improve- ments in present transportation systems.
Efforts are underway to upgrade existing bus service, promote car and van pooling, and think of ways to make use of existing rail systems in and around cities.
The Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) was enacted in 1998. The law authorizes $41 billion over six years to improve the nation’s transit system. TEA-21 also provides money to fund the development of high-speed rail in some areas of the nation and to continue re- searching the development of magnetic levitation (MAGLEV) trains.
602 CHAPTER 21: SOCIAL AND DOMESTIC POLICY
Section 4 Assessment Section 4 Review
Checking for Understanding
1. Main Idea Use a graphic organizer like the one below to contrast the Democratic and Republi- can views on housing policy.
2. Define urban renewal, public housing, mass transit.
3. Identify Federal Housing Administration, Depart- ment of Housing and Urban Development.
4. Describe three programs the government initiat- ed to aid education in the 1990s.
5. What was the role of the FHA in helping individ- ual families afford housing?
Critical Thinking
6. Demonstrating Reasoned Judgment Why do governments at all levels spend so much money to support education?
Democrats
Republicans
Federalism The federal government has developed several programs to ensure ade- quate housing for the people living in the United States. Find out about such programs that are established in your community that build or remodel homes for low-income fami- lies. Find out how the programs operate and who administers them. Share your findings with the class.