FHWA GHG Planning Requirements

In November 2023, the Federal Highway Administration announced a greenhouse gas rule that will require state and local transportation officials to set declining emissions targets for road projects funded with federal money. The rule requires state transportation departments and local metropolitan planning organizations to measure and report the amount of heat-trapping pollution that highway projects would create. Then those agencies have to set targets for reducing their emissions over periods of two or four years. The rule gives local officials flexibility to set their emissions targets, “so long as they are declining.” The new requirements could encourage state and local governments to invest in transit and improved access and safety for bicyclists and pedestrians.