House overwhelmingly backs 5-year transportation bill

WASHINGTON (AP) — After years of stymied efforts to address the nation's aging and congested highways and bridges, Congress found the sweet spot for passage on Thursday — a 5-year, $305 billion bill laden with enough industry favors, parochial projects, safety improvements and union demands to gain overwhelming support.

Despite that, the 1,300-page bill was hailed by industry and public officials as a major accomplishment that will halt the cycle of last-minute short-term fixes that have kept the trust fund teetering on the edge of insolvency for much of the past eight years.

Republicans leaders can point to the bill's passage as evidence of their ability to govern, and President Barack Obama can claim progress on addressing the nation's aging and congested infrastructure, a major goal since the early days of his administration.

The trucking industry was able to persuade lawmakers to order the government to remove trucking company safety scores from a public website despite opposition from safety advocates.

The Amalgamated Transit Union, which represents city bus drivers, won provision requiring the government to direct transit agencies to take steps to protect bus drivers from assault, a growing problem.

The Federal Transit Administration is required to consider whether transit systems provide bathroom breaks and access to bathrooms for bus drivers which evaluating the safety of the systems.

A provision sponsored by Rep. Dina Titus, a Nevada Democrat whose district includes Las Vegas, authorizes the creation of a national advisory committee made up of travel and tourism industry officials to develop a national strategy for ensuring transportation policies address the needs of travelers.