To amend title 23, United States Code, to direct the Secretary of Transportation to establish national tunnel inspection standards for the proper safety inspection and evaluation of all highway tunnels, and for other purposes.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 409, to amend title 23 of the United States Code, to ensure the safety of the traveling public by establishing a national program to inspect highway tunnels, modeled after the National Bridge Inspection Program.

I thank the gentleman from Massachusetts, Mr. Capuano, for introducing this important piece of legislation that will address the absence of comprehensive inspections standards for our Nation's highway tunnels.

Madam Speaker, recent tragic events have highlighted the very real crisis facing our Nation's transportation infrastructure. America's transportation network is aging and increasingly in need of maintenance or reconstruction. Many facilities are being stretched to the limit of their design life and beyond.

The tragic collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge in my home State illustrated the deteriorating conditions of our bridges and the need for routine inspections. Similarly, another tragedy in Massachusetts has shown that we must do the same for highway tunnels.

On Monday, July 10, 2006, at approximately 11 p.m., a section of the suspended concrete ceiling above the eastbound lanes of the Interstate 90 connector tunnel in Boston, Massachusetts, fell onto a vehicle traveling to Logan International Airport. A passenger, riding in the right front seat of the vehicle, was killed. The driver escaped with minor injuries.

The National Transportation Safety Board, NTSB, immediately launched an investigation into the cause of the ceiling panel collapse.

On July 10, 2007, the NTSB issued its accident report, identifying the failure of the epoxy adhesive used to attach the panels to the anchors in the ceiling to sustain long-term loads as the probable cause of the accident.

The NTSB report observed that had the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority inspected the area above the suspended ceilings at regular intervals, the anchor creep that led to this accident would likely have been detected, and this tragedy could have been prevented.

The NTSB report also found that the Federal Highway Administration, FHWA, lacked the regulatory authority to conduct tunnel inspections, and recommended that the FHWA seek legislation authorizing the agency to establish a mandatory tunnel inspection program similar to the National Bridge Inspection Program.

H.R. 409 will fulfill the NTSB recommendation, and establish a national program to inspect highway tunnels.

Under this legislation, the Secretary of Transportation, in consultation with State departments of transportation, private organizations and individuals, is required to establish national tunnel inspection standards for safety inspections and evaluations of all public highway tunnels.

This bill also establishes criteria for certification and training of tunnel inspectors, and requires States to prepare and maintain an inventory of public highway tunnels.

FHWA has already begun to develop a tunnel inspection regime modeled after the bridge inspection program. This regime must account for the inherent differences between bridges and tunnels. Working in conjunction with the Federal Transit Administration, the agency has published highway and rail transit tunnel inspection manuals.

FHWA has also begun the process of working with State departments of transportation, highway tunnel owners, and other stakeholders to develop National Tunnel Inspection Standards and establish minimum training and qualification requirements for inspectors.

These are important steps, but the passage of this legislation will ensure that FHWA has the resources necessary to develop and implement comprehensive tunnel inspection standards and training.

I thank the gentleman from Florida, Ranking Member Mica, and his staff for working with us to ensure that this legislation accomplished its goal of increasing tunnel safety without inadvertently diverting resources from bridge inspections.

Madam Speaker, while we cannot undo the damage caused by this accident, we can, and we must, take the necessary actions to prevent future tunnel collapses. H.R. 409 establishes a framework to address the serious safety concerns raised by the NTSB, and ensures that tragedies like that of July 10, 2006, will never occur again.

I urge my colleagues to join me in strongly supporting H.R. 409.

Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I would like to voice my strong support for H.R. 409, and I would also like to commend Chairman DeFazio and the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Capuano) for bringing this bill to the floor at this time.

On August 2, the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee passed an earlier version of this bill on a voice vote. I believe that the entire committee agreed with the main objective of this bill, to ensure that our Nation's highway tunnels are safe. But some members had concerns about the new tunnel inspections directly competing with ongoing bridge inspections. This substitute bill addresses these concerns.

This bill requires the Federal Highway Administration to establish a new national highway tunnel inspection program in consultation with State DOTs and other knowledgeable organizations. The new tunnel inspection program is modeled directly on the existing highway bridge inspection program and addresses three major areas: One, it establishes national highway tunnel inspection standards to ensure tunnel inspection uniformity. Secondly, this establishes a national tunnel inventory

to publish the findings of all tunnel inspections. And thirdly, it develops a national program for training and certification of highway tunnel inspectors.

This bill will make tunnel inspection requirements consistent with the current bridge inspection requirements. I think this is a concept we can all agree on.

There are approximately 400 highway tunnels in the United States, and we need to make sure that those tunnels are safe. But there are more than 580,000 road and highway bridges in the United States, including almost 55,000 interstate bridges. I'm pleased that instead of having tunnel inspections compete directly with highway bridge inspections, the substitute bill before us makes tunnel inspections eligible for funding from other highway programs: the Surface Transportation Program, the Federal Highway Administration administrative expenses, or surface transportation research funds.

I hope that if this legislation secures Senate passage and becomes law, we can further fine-tune the tunnel inspection funding source issue so that the different tunnel inspection activities are funded from the appropriate program.

Again, I voice my support for H.R. 409, and I urge its passage.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I have no additional speakers, and I simply will urge passage, and yield back the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 409. This legislation will require that tunnels are inspected with the same kind of intensity and scrutiny as bridges in every community in the United States.

In Massachusetts for years now we have been working on the Central Artery/Tunnel Project, also known as the ``Big Dig'', a system of tunnels that has made it much easier to get around in and outside of Boston. In July of 2006 there was a tragic death in the Ted Williams tunnel due to a collapse of a concrete panel in the ceiling. By adding tunnels to all inspection legislation we will give states the vital jurisdiction they need to look into important transportation structures.

This bill will not require excessive funds or staffing. As of right now it is estimated by the Department of Transportation that it will cost less than $1 million and require 5 employees or less to run the program. This is a small amount to ask for the safety it would provide to all of our constituents across the U.S.

The legislation calls for standards that must be met for all of the tunnel inspections and timelines for states to fix any reported deficiencies. We have seen first hand in Minnesota this year what can happen if a structurally deficient bridge is left unchecked. This bill would help reduce the risk of more tragedies occurring as a result of tunnels that have fallen into disrepair. In addition, the Federal Highway Administration would be required to work with state transportation departments to establish a certification and training program for tunnel inspectors as well as keep an inventory of highway tunnels.

I urge adoption of this important legislation.

Madam Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 409, a bill that will go a long way toward making our highway infrastructure safer. I want to give special thanks to my colleague from Somerville, Congressman Capuano, for introducing this common-sense bill.

H.R. 409 expands the National Bridge Inspection Program to include the inspection of highway tunnels. Current law does not contain national standards or requirements for inspecting tunnels. This bill corrects that flaw. In doing so, I believe that lives will be saved.

It is, sadly, because of the loss of life that this bill came to be.

On the evening of July 10, 2006, Milena Del Valle was killed tragically as she and her husband traveled to Boston's Logan Airport, utilizing the Ted Williams Tunnel. Milena was killed when sections of the concrete ceiling collapsed.

A number of investigations were launched in the wake of this tragedy. One, undertaken by the National Transportation Safety Board, cited ``inadequate regulatory requirements for tunnel inspections'' as a major safety issue that merited correction.

This bill puts in place those needed requirements, mandatory tunnel inspections, and creates a national list of tunnels, to complement existing lists of bridges. I hope that swift action today in the House will be followed by the Senate, so that any future tragedies like we saw in Massachusetts can be averted, Again, I want to thank Congressman Capuano, and am pleased to support this bill.

Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 409) to amend title 23, United States Code, to inspect highway tunnels, as amended.

Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on H.R. 409.

Madam Speaker, this legislation will fill a gap in the national inspection regime and in public safety, one that was brought to our attention by the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Capuano). Obviously, a failing infrastructure is very much on the minds of the public, given the collapse in Minnesota this last year, but, unfortunately, the Minnesota instance is not unique and it points to the need for constant vigilance and inspection of the critical infrastructure to avoid tragic accidents. And in this case, the gentleman from Massachusetts has pointed out that we do not have a regular regime of tunnel inspection, nor do we have standards which are set nationally for tunnel safety and inspection, nor do we have certified tunnel inspectors. All of that would be rectified by this legislation, so I'm very supportive of the legislation.

Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Capuano).

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.