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The Department of Transportation said Monday it was handing out $20.9 million to states to help train first responders dealing with hazardous materials incidents.

Once the economy recovers and freight traffic begins to grow again, the nation needs to look at broad transportation issues that address everything from funding to livability, newly appointed Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez said.

NIC Technologies LLC said Tuesday it has been awarded the contract to oversee the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration’s pre-employment screening system for truck and bus drivers.

Federal regulators plan to offer a new regulation early next year that will prohibit flammable liquids from being transported in unprotected product piping on existing and newly manufactured cargo tank trucks.

Transportation officials said they are optimistic Congress still will pass a long-term highway bill in coming months, but the exact timetable could depend on how quickly lawmakers wrap up debate on other legislation.

New York Gov. David Paterson (D) is calling for a state law that would require truckers using global positioning system devices to use only ones containing truck route information.

You can’t watch television these days without hearing some railroad company advertising the “green” benefits of moving freight from the road to rail. The most often heard is the claim by one major railroad that “one ton of freight can be moved 436 miles on one gallon of fuel.”

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said last week its clean diesel efforts have produced $500 million to $1.4 billion in public health benefits.