Bishop: Highway Bill Must Make Roads Safer in Addition to Creating Jobs

Press Release

Continuing his leadership in Congress on improving the safety of America's roads, Congressman Tim Bishop said today that he is working to implement a strong safety agenda in the Highway Bill currently pending in a House-Senate Conference Committee, of which he is a member.

Bishop has sponsored the bipartisan Safe Teen and Novice Driver Uniform Protection (STAND UP) Act, bipartisan legislation to set national standards for states to implement Graduated Drivers License (GDL) programs that prepare teens to be safe, responsible drivers. Similar provisions have already been passed by the Senate, and Bishop announced he is working for their inclusion in the consensus Highway Bill at a press conference on Capitol Hill with a coalition of safety advocates including families affected by roadway accidents, pediatricians, and insurance companies.

"There is no more dangerous place for a teenager than behind the wheel or as a passenger with another teen driving, and reasonable steps to better acclimate teens to driving will save lives," Congressman Bishop said, noting that motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for U.S. teenagers, killing more teens than homicide, suicide and cancer combined. "The Highway Bill should not only build roads, it should make roads safer for all drivers."

Bishop is also pushing for measures included in legislation he introduced and in the Senate-passed highway bill to expand job creation in road and mass transit construction that would add 113,000 jobs in New York, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

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