Dive Brief:

• The Federal Highway Administration announced Friday that it will delay enforcement of a regulation that would have required states to develop performance measurements for tracking greenhouse gas emissions on new federally funded highways, according to The Hill.
• The Obama-era rule aimed to find out whether the federal government is funding projects that have a damaging effect on the environment. The FHWA will now open up a new public comment round as it considers potential revisions to the regulation. 
• Opponents of the regulation, including the Associated General Contractors of America, said it extended beyond the authority established in previous infrastructure funding bills. 

Dive Insight:

Some critics of the GHG measure have said it would ultimately result in preference going to alternative transportation options over surface transportation initiatives and unfairly criticize new projects. Proponents, however, counter that state and local officials need to find out the environmental impact of their projects, as the transportation sector is the nation's largest polluter of carbon emissions.

Governments across the U.S. are looking to boost alternative transportation options and offer developer incentives for projects that encourage biking, car-sharing and other non-individual car options. The San Francisco Board of Supervisors approved a points-based measure in February that will require developers who want to include free parking with their projects to also provide features that promote alternative transportation methods.

And in April, New York won $112.2 million in FHWA funding for 81 projects that increase pedestrian and bicycle access or improve air quality. The New York State Department of Transportation won the funding through a competitive process in which applicants submitted plans for providing more non-vehicular transportation options or reducing vehicle emissions and traffic congestion.