[ardecila]

There is, in fact, a bill introduced to Congress that would reformulate transportation funding procedures. Transit and highways would no longer be considered as separate categories, but as equal contenders for the same pot of money, based on the projected traffic/ridership that said projects would generate.

The only differentiation would be by projected cost, with 4 different brackets from the most expensive to the least. Within each bracket, both highways and transit would vie for the same money.

Of course, under such a system, there is rampant incentive to inflate the projected traffic/ridership, so USDOT will need to establish regulations to discourage cheaters.