The future of high-speed rail is at stake in the 2020 election. | AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee

Moving the U.S. toward a zero-emission future By nearly every metric, the U.S.?s transportation system is in dire need of a federally funded overhaul. Over 40,000 Americans die in motor vehicle crashes per year, and 7 million Americans are on the verge of defaulting on their car loans. Transit ridership is down in virtually every major U.S. city, while traffic congestion?and carbon emissions?have increased.
In recent years, modernizing the U.S. transportation system has become an even more crucially important issue for the country. Transportation is now the largest and fastest-growing contributor to climate change. As of last year, transportation accounts for nearly one-third of U.S. emissions?more than the generation of electricity. But transportation remains a blind spot in federal policy. Weaning the country off fossil fuels will only address part of the crisis?many of the country?s transportation problems are attributable to its car dependence. Yet Congress?including three of these candidates, Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar, all of whom co-sponsored the Green New Deal?is set to approve a five-year highway spending bill that will expand roadways, with few provisions for reducing emissions.

On the campaign trail, 2020 presidential candidates are talking about how making major changes to the way Americans get around can improve the economy, ...