Test your faith in Congress!

Thursday is “Dump the Pump Day,” with motorists encouraged to take mass transit once a week as a way or join a carpool or vanpool to save some coin and do something nice for the air.

Sounds good. Of course, it would also be good if there were more mass transit options for all riders.

Enter the 30/10 Initiative, which proposes to build a dozen of the Measure R transit projects in the next decade instead of the next 30 years by using a series of federal loans and other financing tools.

But for 30/10 to happen, Congress likely has to create a 30/10 program — none exists now — that transit agencies across the nation can use.

Such a law will likely be part of the federal transportation spending bill that Congress must pass every few years. The last one was in 2005 and the new one was supposed to be taken up by the House of Representatives and Senate in 2009. Due to legislative delays and other issues that have taken priority, the bill likely won’t be negotiated and voted on until 2011.

Several members of Congress have said they support 30/10. So has U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, an Obama political appointee. What do you think? Will Congress do it? Vote above and let’s measure readers’ confidence level in Washington.