On Dec. 4, President Barack Obama signed into law the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act, which will modestly encourage the use of public-private partnerships as the preferred method to execute much needed transportation and infrastructure projects. Much more is needed by Congress to encourage P3s in the states and counties but at least it is a start.
By way of background, the FAST Act includes organizational changes that will provide an opportunity for important structural improvements with the potential to accelerate the delivery of innovative finance projects. This is the first law enacted in over 10 years that provides long-term funding certainty for surface transportation, where state and local governments can advance critical transportation projects to include new highways and transit lines, with the confidence they will have a federal partner over the long term.
