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Fact Sheet: Improving Travel During The Holidays And Beyond
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For Immediate Release Office of the Press Secretary November 18, 2008

Fact Sheet: Improving Travel During The Holidays And Beyond President Bush
Announces Expansion Of "Thanksgiving Express Lanes" And Opening Of Three
New Runways To Reduce Congestion; Also Highlights Transportation Safety
Record

ÿÿWhite House News

ÿÿÿÿÿ President Bush Discusses Aviation Congestion and Transportation
Safety

Today, President Bush visited the Department of Transportation (DOT) and
discussed measures to improve air travel, both during the upcoming holiday
season and in the future, and highlighted his Administration's
transportation safety record.ÿOver the holidays, millions of Americans will
take to the roads, railways, and skies to visit loved ones.ÿ For too many
travelers, though, it means long delays, cancellations, and lost bags.ÿ
Today the President announced new measures that bolster the
Administration's efforts to address those problems.ÿ
  þ This year, the military is expanding "Thanksgiving Express Lanes" to
    areas of the Midwest, Southwest, and West Coast, including the skies
    over Phoenix and Los Angeles.ÿAs they did last Thanksgiving, the
    Federal Aviation Administration and Department of Defenseÿwill make
    military airspace available for use by civilian airliners over the
    holiday season _ but this year even more airspace will be open, and it
    will be available for a longer period of time.
  þ The Administration has also launched an unprecedented effort to reduce
    air congestion by boosting flight capacity at some of America's busiest
    airports. DOT has completed 13 major airport improvement projects,
    including 11 new runways.ÿ This week, three more runways (for a total
    of 14 during this Administration) will open at Seattle-Tacoma,
    Washington-Dulles, and Chicago-O'Hare.
  þ The Administration is working with the Federal Aviation Administration
    and Transportation Security Administration to make more staff available
    to speed up check-in and boarding and to help passengers affected by
    cancellations and delays.
  þ DOT has completed new regulations that provide increased protections
    for consumers.ÿ Recent actions include requiring airlines to provide
    greater compensation for lost bags and imposing tougher penalties when
    airlines fail to notify travelers of hidden fees.ÿ We expect these new
    rules to take effect in December, in time for Christmas and the New
    Year.
      þ Next month, airlines will be required to pay travelers up to $3,300
        per lost bag, up from today's $3,000.ÿ
      þ Next month, the maximum consumer protection penalties will rise
        from $25,000 to $27,500.ÿ
  þ The Administration is advancing a regulation to hold airlines
    accountable for how they treat passengers during long tarmac delays.
    The new proposed rule would require airlines to have airport-specific
    plans in place to ensure that all passengers are treated appropriately
    during extended tarmac delays.ÿÿ

The Administration is also addressing the heavy air traffic around New York
City, which is the source of many of the flight delays and cancellations
across our country.ÿ We have improved local air-traffic control, added a
new departure route from the metro area, and capped the total number of
flights.ÿ DOT has just awarded nearly $90 million over an eight-year period
to upgrade existing taxiways and build new ones at John F. Kennedy
International Airport. ÿTogether, these actions will help reduce flight
delays across the country.
  þ Starting this January, the FAA will auction takeoff and landing slots
    at New York airports.ÿ This will increase competition for access to
    these airports, helping to lower fares for consumers.ÿ It will provide
    incentives for airlines to boost their efficiency and use larger planes
    to carry more passengers on each flight.
  þ Today, President Bush signed an Executive Order to ensure that
    modernizing our aviation system remains a leading priority for Federal
    agencies.ÿThis action strengthens DOT's coordination with other Federal
    agencies. ÿÿ
      þ The EO will help transform the national air transportation system
        and effectively implement the NextGen Initiative (Next Generation
        Air Transportation System) that utilizes satellite-based guidance
        technology, which is safer, more secure, affordable, and
        environmentally friendly.ÿ

DOT Has Built An Impressive Record When It Comes To Improving Travel

Under President Bush's leadership, DOT has built a strong record on
improving air travel for American consumers.ÿDuring the President's time in
office, the Federal government has put in place regulations to make
airlines more accountable for the way they treat passengers and helped
achieved important safety milestones.ÿ
  þ As of May, passengers who are involuntarily bumped from their flight
    receive double the compensation from airlines: up to $800 if they are
    not rerouted to reach their destination within two hours of their
    original arrival time, or four hours for international flights.
  þ The last seven years are the safest period in commercial aviation on
    record.ÿ
  þ America is currently experiencing the lowest highway fatality rate on
    record.ÿ

This Administration's efforts to open international aviation markets have
given our airlines new access to dozens of foreign countries and have
dramatically increased service for the traveling public. ÿThrough
agreements with the European Union, India, Australia, Canada, Thailand, and
China, the Administration has increased flights between the United States
and these countries, expanding options for passengers and shippers and
creating competitive opportunities for our airlines.ÿ

DOT has also worked to safeguard our environment and promoted energy
security.ÿ The energy bill President Bush signed last year will save fuel
and cut greenhouse gas emissions by specifying a national fuel economy
standard of 35 miles per gallon by 2020.ÿ Additionally, President Bush and
his Administration are:
  þ Dramatically boosting our output of clean-burning biodiesel and
    ethanol.ÿ
  þ Providing tax credits for the purchase of low-emission hybrid
    vehicles.ÿ
  þ Investing in technologies like advanced batteries and hydrogen fuel
    cells, which will power the clean vehicles of the future.
  þ Making significant progress in improving fuel efficiency and reducing
    environmental impacts of the air transportation system.

DOT Can Be Proud Of Making Transportation Systems Safer, Cleaner, And More
Effective _ Yet There Is Still Much More To Be Done

Reform is needed, both in our skies and along our roads. As Members of
Congress take up the next highway and aviation bills in the coming year,
they should adhere to a few key principles.ÿ They should harness the power
of the free market through policies like congestion pricing, which uses the
laws of supply and demand to reduce traffic on our roads and in the air.ÿ
They should ensure that taxpayer funds for transportation are allocated
based on the true needs of the American people and economy _ not spent on
wasteful earmarks or the political demands of influential lobbies.ÿ They
should provide incentives to leverage private investment in the private
sector to develop new technologies, invest in our infrastructure, and help
make our transportation system worthy of the 21st century.ÿ

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