Now: Presser w @NancyPelosi. We must #RebuildRenew USA via #infrastructure investment @CAincline @santamonicacity pic.twitter.com/GpZR2qTc2A

— Rep. Ted Lieu (@RepTedLieu) July 17, 2015

Joined @RepTedLieu at the @CAincline to discuss the need for a long-term Highway Trust Fund bill. #RebuildRenew pic.twitter.com/7Madl5197n

— Nancy Pelosi (@SpeakerPelosi) July 17, 2015

#RebuildRenew https://t.co/DGjJjUCQL0

— City of Santa Monica (@santamonicacity) July 17, 2015

Metro CEO Phil Washington and Metro Board Member Sheila Kuehl participated in a media event this morning in Santa Monica along with House Minority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Rep. Ted Lieu, with the officials for Congress to pass a long-term transportation funding bill.

Long-story-short: Congress keeps kicking the can down the road on this one. It passed a four-year T-bill in 2005 that was extended multiple times after expiring in 2009. And then Congress passed a two-year bill in 2012 that is going the same route.

The problem with delays is this: the federal Highway Trust Fund is going broke. As the name implies, the fund helps pays for road and transit projects but it relies heavily on the federal gas tax, which hasn’t been raised since 1993. Why? There’s no polite way of saying it. Let’s just say that many Congress members are acutely aware that they are up for reelection every two years.

There, I said it.

If you would like to follow the conversation about transportation and our nation’s infrastructure, use the #RebuildRenew.