Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act

On July 6, 2012, President Obama signed into law P.L. 112-141, the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21). MAP-21 creates a streamlined, performance-based, and multimodal program to address the many challenges facing the U.S. transportation system. These challenges include improving safety, maintaining infrastructure condition, reducing traffic congestion, improving efficiency of the system and freight movement, protecting the environment, and reducing delays in project delivery.

MAP-21 builds on and refines many of the highway, transit, bike, and pedestrian programs and policies established in 1991. MAP-21 expands the National Highway System (NHS) to incorporate principal arterials not previously included. Investment targets the enhanced NHS, with more than half of highway funding going to the new program devoted to preserving and improving the most important highways -- the National Highway Performance Program.

MAP-21 restructures core highway formula programs. Activities carried out under some existing formula programs – the National Highway System Program, the Interstate Maintenance Program, the Highway Bridge Program, and the Appalachian Development Highway System Program – are incorporated into the following new core formula program structure:

• National Highway Performance Program (NHPP)
• Surface Transportation Program (STP)
• Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality Improvement Program (CMAQ)
• Highway Safety Improvement Program (HSIP)
• Railway-Highway Crossings (set-aside from HSIP)
• Metropolitan Planning

 

It creates two new formula programs:

• Construction of Ferry Boats and Ferry Terminal Facilities – replaces a similarly purposed discretionary program.
• Transportation Alternatives (TA) – a new program, with funding derived from the NHPP, STP, HSIP, CMAQ and Metropolitan Planning programs, encompassing most activities funded under the Transportation Enhancements, Recreational Trails, and Safe Routes to School programs under SAFETEA-LU.

 

For more detailed information, please visit the Federal Highway Administration's MAP-21 overview site.