​FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Maryland Department of Transportation Office of Public Affairs
David Broughton, 410-865-1029
Jim Joyner, 410-865-1030

​MDOT Also Publishes First-Ever Carbon Reduction Strategy This Month

HANOVER, MD (November 22, 2023) – Maryland Transportation Secretary Paul J. Wiedefeld released the following statement regarding the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Highway Administration's final rule issued today that establishes a greenhouse gas performance measure to provide State Departments of Transportation and Metropolitan Planning Organizations a national framework to track transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions along with the flexibility to set their own targets for reduction:

“Achieving Maryland's bold climate goals will require leadership by the Maryland Department of Transportation. A first step to cutting carbon pollution from the transportation sector is measuring emissions and setting specific and declining emission reduction targets tied to our investment program.

“That's the cornerstone of any credible strategy to tackle climate change and I thank USDOT Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Federal Highway Administrator Shailen Bhatt for charging states and metropolitan planning organizations with the responsibility to lay the foundation by making a final greenhouse gas performance measurement rule.

“Maryland will lead the nation by example by implementing this commonsense rule right away. In fact, we just took a big step forward this month by publishing the Maryland Department of Transportation's first-ever Carbon Reduction Strategy, detailing just how we'll curb carbon pollution."