U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and Senator Rob Portman were in East Liberty to tour the Transportation Research Center on Monday. Above, Chao, right, speaks with Garrick Forkenbrock, left, in the applied crash avoidance division at TRC. Pictured with Chao and Forkenbrock are Portman, next to Chao and Tim Johnson, director of the National Highway Traffic Administration’s Vehicle Research and Testing Center at TRC. (Journal-Tribune photo by Mac Cordell)
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At the invitation of U.S. Sen. Rob Portman, a federal cabinet member was in the community Monday.
As U.S. Transportation Secretary, Elaine Chao oversees the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA). Monday, she was at the Transportation Research Center (TRC) in East Liberty to tour the administrations vehicle research and test center.
“Thank you so much for the working so hard to make America safe,” Chao told a group of NHTSA officials and researchers.
She toured a variety of sites at the 4,500-acre research facility and spoke with transportation and economic leaders from around the region.
“It has been so impressive to see this whole facility, to see the wonderful professionals who are so dedicated to reducing highway fatalities and injuries, to improving our country’s infrastructure.”
She said part of her job is to examine best practices so other facilities can emulate them.
“We have made a lot of progress, but we still need to do more,” Chao said of highway and vehicle safety.
She said traffic deaths rose 6 percent and 8 percent in 2015 and 2016 respectively.
“It is not a good trend line, which is why we made this trip to NHTSA,” said Chao.
Marianne Mclnerney, from Chao’s office, said she expects the secretary, “will be back soon because there are so many innovative things going on here.”
Chao called President Donald Trump, “a very curious and actively engaged person. She said he is “on top” of what happens in Silicon Valley and is “very interested” in self-driving vehicles and their technology.
“The president is very interested in autonomous vehicles, in the technology of the future,” said Chao. “He is very interested in preserving and protecting the innovative spirit of our country. But he also understands there are aspects about the technology that our citizens and residents are concerned about.”
Chao called TRC “an example of the public-private partnerships that can occur.”
Honda of America Manufacturing purchased TRC from the State of Ohio in January 1988 for $31 million with money from the sale used to establish a transportation research endowment fund at The Ohio State University. Honda continues to own the property, which is operated by TRC Inc. and managed by The Ohio State University.
“What we are seeing right now is there are many barriers to public-private partnerships,” said Chao. “I am not saying that that is the sole solution, but public-private partnerships should be allowed.”
The secretary said the administration is looking at elimination barriers to “allow the private sector to participate in the financing of our country’s infrastructure.”
Chao added that she is looking at, “the permitting aspect.” She said it takes too long to build roads, bridges, ports and airports. She said it can be difficult to get financing for projects that take so much time.
“We want to protect the environment and make sure those environmental protections are in place, but we’ve got to narrow down and reduce that time of waiting to build new roads because our country needs new roads and new infrastructure.”
The secretary said President Donald Trump is “very concerned about the deteriorating state of our infrastructure, so he has made a commitment that he will fund or invest a trillion dollars over the next 10 years.”
“We are in the process of discussing different ways to pay for that,” said Chao.
Portman added, “There is lots of discussion on that and frankly, lots of points of view on this.”
Chao said a task force of private citizens has been established to “provide ideas on how to finance and fund our infrastructure.”
She said the president is looking at a combination of funding options including public funding, government funding, public private partnerships and revenue from the soon to be proposed tax reform package.
She said as a former labor secretary, “job creation is a very important subject for me.” She said 11 percent of Ohio’s jobs are auto related. Chao said “the innovative spirit” at TRC adds to the growing job market.
Portman said he hopes Chao was able to see not just NHTSA facilities but also TRC’s “broader vision.”
Mark-Tami Hotta, president and chief executive officer of TRC, said he also hopes Chao learned the federal facility and TRC are “part of a greater eco-facility.”
He said the more the secretary knows about the local facilities, the more she will appreciate the research being done.
“NHTSA is doing good work and that needs to be supported and fully funded,” Hotta said.