U.S. transportation chief in area

The Bush administration may be in its waning days, but that isn't stopping U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters from trying to beat the clock.

While checking out new hybrid vehicles during a stop at a Navistar International plant in Melrose Park Thursday, Peters pushed major changes to the nation's transportation systems.

The reforms include prioritizing maintenance of federal highways, consolidating divisions within the Department of Transportation, encouraging more public-private partnerships, increasing congestion pricing and allowing states to expand tolls to interstates.

"Trying something new isn't easy," Peters acknowledged, "but we must if we are going to keep our economy vibrant."

But the secretary could face an uphill battle.

Already, U.S. Rep. James Oberstar, chairman of the House Transportation Committee, has criticized the proposal as too little, too late.

"It's a collection of the same uninspired and uninspiring policies that this administration has offered over the past five years - toll it, privatize it, lease it, sell it or congestion price it," the Minnesota Democrat said in a statement.

Asked about the skepticism, Peters responded that Oberstar had praised similar policies when suggested by a federal panel in January.

Federal gas taxes used to traditionally fund transportation projects aren't working, Peters stressed. Instead, options such as tolls provide a steady stream of revenue from users and congestion pricing, which raises fees for drivers during peak periods, leads to less congestion, she advocated.

Treating transportation as a utility, like electricity or gas, means "you can govern how much you use the system," Peters said.

During her visit, she inspected a hybrid utility truck used by Commonwealth Edison and a plug-in hybrid school bus produced by Navistar, which is based in Warrenville.