The Maximizing Transportation Efficiency Act directs the federal government to expand funding and support for transportation demand management (TDM) strategies—programs that encourage people to use carpools, vanpools, public transit, and other alternatives to driving alone. The bill establishes a new $20 million annual grant program specifically for rural areas, where residents often spend more on transportation due to limited options, and creates an additional $20 million competitive grant program for smaller transportation projects nationwide. Eligible recipients include state transportation departments, local governments, tribal governments, transit agencies, and nonprofit organizations that can use funding for activities like vanpooling programs, employer incentive benefits, trip-planning apps, parking management, and public education campaigns. The bill also modifies existing federal transportation programs to explicitly allow funding for TDM strategies, recognizing that such approaches are a cost-effective way to reduce traffic congestion (estimated at $74 billion annually) and improve access to jobs and services, particularly in underserved rural communities.
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