The Federal DOT has begun soliciting feedback on its many regulations in an attempt to streamline regulations that have become burdensome to many infrastructure projects. Many have suggested that these regulations have protracted project schedules and increased project costs. This report [PDF] on project delays by the Surface Transportation Policy Project from 2002 shows that attempts to streamline various regulations affecting surface transport has been ongoing for years.
This solicitation for public involvement in DOT process is a welcome one, though its effective reach will be limited to those who are already familiar with or are willing to familiarise themselves with the DOT's various regulations. It will be interesting to see what comes of this, especially since so many transit projects are mired in more regulatory processes than highway and road projects. Expect Streetsblog Capital Hill to cover this in the next few days and Transportation for America to make a few suggestions on which regulatory changes to up-vote on the feedback site itself.
With the number of transit projects in the Boston area tied up in some stage of the funding, environmental review process, or community feedback process, it's likely that some amount of regulatory reform can help move these and future projects forward faster. Any thoughts out there in the void of the Internet?