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Legislative Policies

Kentucky's transportation infrastructure impacts our state's economy and every individual Kentuckian's quality of life

In order to promote economic growth and improved quality of life, KBT advocates for a safe, sustainable transportation infrastructure.

KBT Committees develop comprehensive legislative policy statements to address issues that impact safety and funding for Kentucky’s transportation infrastructure. These policy statements serve as the foundation for positions on Legislative proposals that impact Kentucky’s transportation infrastructure.

Click on a mode to expand it & read current legislative policies

Kentuckians for Better Transportation educates and advocates for a safe and sustainable multi-modal transportation network that provides mobility across the Commonwealth for economic growth and improved quality of life. We advocate for increasing the competitiveness and longevity of Kentucky’s transportation modes in the following ways:

Kentucky is home to 53 general aviation airports that serve regional needs and five commercial airports that provide scheduled passenger and/or air cargo services. Kentucky is a national leader in aviation and aerospace services thanks to our many local and regional hubs and clusters, and we support these important resources in the following ways:

  • Advocate for adequate sustainable funding from the legislature for airports in the Commonwealth and support the economic impact of all of Kentucky’s airports.
  • Explore, with the Cabinet for Economic Development, a fund or incentives to increase the number of flights and carriers at Commercial Service Airports.
  • Foster, establish, fund, and promote educational opportunities and pathways at all levels of Kentucky schools.
  • Ensure the viability and sustainability of EAS (Essential Air Service).
  • Create an atmosphere of innovation and discovery in Kentucky to encourage the rapid development and expansion of new industries, including advanced air mobility (AAM) and renewable aviation fuels.

Over 80,000 miles of roads run through the state, connecting the far fields of Hickman with the hollers of Jenkins. Over 14,000 bridges connect these roads, but many of these roads and bridges are in desperate need of maintenance and repair. Fully funding Kentucky’s road and highway network will provide an exceptional return on investment, but to ensure a healthy road system, Kentucky must:

  • Modernize & reform Kentucky’s road funding mechanisms to address immediate and long-term transportation needs. We recommend this be done through
    • The formation of a Blue-Ribbon Commission to develop strategies on how Kentucky can best transition current transportation funding models, recognizing that changing fuel sources will impact how the Commonwealth funds vital transportation infrastructure.
    • Implementation of an appropriate inflationary index to preserve the value of road fund dollars for both motor fuel and EV charging stations.
    • Adjustment of electric and hybrid vehicle fees to better align them with fees paid by gas vehicles.
  • Protect workers and motorists in highway construction zones by implementing common sense measures, including work zone camera enforcement, to encourage the traveling public to reduce speed while workers are present.

One of the most traditional modes of transportation, Kentucky’s rich history in rail usage ties into several other modes and allows for an environmentally friendly and efficient way to move freight across the state.

We look to support rail in the following ways:

  • Advocating for the creation of the Kentucky Freight Rail Assistance Fund (KFRAF). The fund shall be used for the enhancement of freight rail service, short-line railroad assistance, industrial access, and safety improvements. Funds can be utilized to serve as a local match for federal grant opportunities to leverage federal dollars in conjunction with state and railroad investment. Opportunities include preserving rail service to local communities, expanding rail connectivity to sites along existing rail corridors, improving the safety and efficiency of freight rail transportation.
    • The fund will be comprised of two types of programs:
      • Short Line Infrastructure Preservation Program: The funding mechanism would be a 50/50 match between KYTC and the local participating Class II or Class III railroad. Project funding from KYTC would not exceed $2.5 million for one designated project during a Fiscal Year.
      • Industrial Access and Safety Improvement Program: The funding mechanism would be an 50/50 match between KYTC and the participating Class I, II, or III railroads, or any designated Railroad Authority, Port Authority, and Industrial and Economic Development Authority Board. Project funding from KYTC would not exceed $1.5 million for one designated project during a Fiscal Year.
  • Continuing to work closely with KYTC and their partners towards the completion of the state rail plan and needs assessment study.

All of Kentucky’s 120 counties have access to some means of public transportation. Public transit is crucial to economic development, workforce growth, educational attainment, and meeting basic human needs. To continue supporting Kentucky’s transportation lifeline, the state should:

  • Provide adequate funding in the public transportation budget to allow public transit authorities to leverage federal grant programs. Every two dollars in local and state funding will leverage eight dollars in federal funds.
  • Support rural transit authorities as Kentucky’s aging and disabled populations, some of the most frequent users of public transit, continue to grow and the demand for such essential services continues to increase.
  • Utilize public transit as a mechanism to connect local communities with regional employers to create local workforce pipelines to assist citizens in obtaining and maintaining employment.
  • Study the benefits of a state planning system and formula allowing public transit authorities the opportunity to appropriately plan for needs.
  • Encourage education of the public transportation availability and uses, especially non- emergency medical transport.
  • Consider support for exploring passenger rail in Kentucky.

Kentucky has 1,590 miles of inland waterways, 1,020 of which are commercially navigable, ranking the Commonwealth 4th in the nation. Waterway and riverport usage are some of the most crucial and efficient ways to reduce congestion amongst other freight modes and support supply chains for energy, chemical, agriculture, food, lumber, and metals and minerals. Kentucky has 10 public riverport authorities with a huge economic impact across the Commonwealth: over 80 counties are considered riverport “hinterlands,” which is an area for which cargo can be potentially draw to and from competitively within a ninety-minute radius from a port.

Kentucky is falling behind many surrounding states in providing additional investment to public riverports. These states that share our waterways are increasing their annual funding to create opportunities for their riverports to modernize and expand into new markets attracting new customers.

To support this mode, KBT requests that the Kentucky General Assembly act on the following during the 2024 Legislative Session:

  • Allocate $15 million in General Funds to Kentucky’s eligible public riverport authorities to address asset preservation as identified in the KYTC study, without the requirement of a local match.
  • Seek increased ongoing annual funding by examining funding sources such as the state portion of the Commercial Watercraft Personal Property Tax revenues.
  • Allocate annual funding through the Kentucky Riverport Financial Assistance Trust fund. The trust fund requires a 20% local match and allows funds to carry over, unlike the current funding structure for riverports.

Access & Safety is important for all transportation modes, but especially for driver, biker, and pedestrian awareness. From 2016-2020, Kentucky saw 3,852 highway related fatalities, including 413 pedestrians and 35 bicyclists during that same timeframe: which places Kentucky above the national average. Vehicular, pedestrian, and biking travel can all be high- risk modes, and Kentucky should adopt policies supporting safer personal travel by focusing on the following areas of need:

  • Implement a Safe System Approach in Kentucky which acknowledges that no one should lose their life or be seriously injured because of a crash; the human body has a limited physical ability to tolerate crash forces; road safety is a shared responsibility; and all parts of the system must be strengthened so that if one part fails, road users are still protected.
  • Support local communities in identifying biking and pedestrian projects that could utilize funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
  • Support comprehensive plans that take all vulnerable users of the transportation system (motorists, bicyclists, pedestrians, etc.) into consideration in future road development, as outlined in the Complete Streets Model.
  • Support policies specific to active transportation, which is defined as human- powered mobility, such as biking or walking. Active transportation is effective at conserving fuel, reducing vehicle emissions, bridging the first- and last-mile gap, and improving individual and public health. Bicycles, electric bikes, wheelchairs, scooters, and walking are all considered active transportation.
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