Huffman Speaks on House Floor: Invest in Rail Infrastructure to Fight Climate Change

May 16, 2013

WASHINGTON­—Congressman Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael), a member of the Safe Climate Caucus, spoke on the floor of the House of Representatives today to urge investments in rail infrastructure to help fight climate change.

“We are in dangerous and uncharted territory: at 400 parts per million, there is now more carbon dioxide in our atmosphere than at any time in the past 3 million year, Congressman Huffman said. “Investments in rail networks at the national scale can increase efficiency, reduce traffic, and fight climate change. It’s time for Congress to get all aboard with this climate solution.”

A video of Congressman Huffman’s speech can be found HERE.

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Congressman Huffman’s full remarks are below:

Floor Statement of Congressman Jared Huffman
May 16, 2013

Mr. Speaker, we are in dangerous and uncharted territory: at 400 parts per million, there is now more carbon dioxide in our atmosphere than at any time in the past 3 million years.

Now, here in the United States, more than a quarter of our greenhouse gas emissions come from the transportation sector. So, it’s urgent that we make our cars and trucks cleaner, but also that we invest in clean modes of transportation, such as rail.

Saturday was National Train Day, which celebrates the rail networks that efficiently move freight and passengers across our country and reduce the number of cars on our roads.

In California, we’re building a high speed rail project with renewable energy. When complete, it will move millions of people far more quickly, cleanly, and efficiently than we do today.

And in the North Bay, we are connecting Sonoma and Marin counties with 70 miles of rail, meaning 1.4 million fewer car trips along Highway 101.

Investments in rail networks at the national scale can increase efficiency, reduce traffic, and fight climate change. It’s time for Congress to get all aboard with this climate solution. I yield the floor.

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