Toward 21st century infrastructure.

• Position: Transportation Sec. Federico F. Pena speech - Transcript

Editor's note: The following remarks were delivered by Secretary of Transportation Pena at 1) The U.S. Border Infrastructure Finance Conference, July 16, 1993, San Antonio, Texas, and 2) a news conference on the National Transportation System in Washington, D.C., December 9, 1993.

Making NAFTA Work

Growth and opportunity will skyrocket under NAFTA. Trade between Mexico and the United States is expected to double by the year 2000 and then double again thereafter. This is a phenomenal rate of growth--but also a challenge.... We must meet the challenge to the infrastructure and our institutions to ensure that the rich economic opportunity of NAFTA does not become a safety and environmental burden on border communities. NAFTA must improve border communities' quality of life, not worsen it.

This critical challenge propels the United States into a new era. It is an exciting era that promises to open huge vistas for private enterprise and private capital in initiating, financing, building and operating transportation infrastructure projects.... To this point, government's principal role in financing land transportation infrastructure has been that of grant maker. This historic role of the federal government must now change.

First we must have an accurate assessment of the infrastructure needs along our borders.... We have to be very sensitive to criticism from some who say these studies are simply "wish lists" that some people would like to have. We must make sure that as we compile information about needs along the border, we focus on those that are most strategic--those that we can justify in terms of economic impact. Most importantly, we must begin to make the very difficult decisions on prioritizing those projects and showing results.

The challenge of making NAFTA work--of not only smoothing the flow of commerce but improving the quality of life at the border--demands a new level of cooperation from all of us. It requires cooperation from the two national governments; from border state governments, cities and regions; and users of the transportation systems. With that in mind, I've been working closely with the state and local officials who ultimately will have to make many of the decisions needed to get the job done.

The second thing we must do is find ways to make our current system of backlogged bridges and highways and rail corridors work better. Most of us realize the challenges of border congestion do not arise solely from inadequate infrastructure. We have already made huge border transportation infrastructure investments--33 international bridges and 17 border crossings; plus major highways and railroads leading to and from those crossings.

As we consider the need for major new infrastructure investments, we also must find ways to maximize the efficiency of the current system. It does no good to build 21st century infrastructure if our institutional framework is stuck in the past.

I will work closely with my colleagues at customs, Immigration and Naturalization Service, and Agriculture |Department~ as well as with the international trade community to make certain that we are exploring practical, imaginative ways to improve the flow of commerce across our borders. I...