The term "Environmental Enhancement" describes positive actions for improving environmental quality, which are not strictly mandated as “mitigation” by laws or regulations. Since the 1960s, emerging environmental laws have required transportation programs and projects to comply with regulations, which generally include impact identification, avoidance, and mitigation for negative impacts. The resulting transportation development processes focused on improving environmental compliance and mitigation for specific impacts to obtain regulatory project approvals.  Experience and lessons learned from the environmental compliance model led to the recognition that transportation infrastructure should be planned, designed, built and maintained to fit the environmental context and when possible, to enhance environmental quality.  A more comprehensive approach referred to as "environmental enhancement," similar to another broadly used term, "environmental stewardship" came into use, describing positive actions for improving environmental quality, which are not required as project-specific "mitigation" by laws and regulations. Environmental enhancement and environmental stewardship eventually became integrated into transportation goals expressed in Federal and state transportation legislation and policy documents and are implemented through many contemporary initiatives. These initiatives include context sensitive solutions, environmental sustainability, environmental management systems, and smart growth. More information on these topics may be found in the Context Sensitive Solutions, Environmental Management Systems, Land Use, and Sustainability sections on this website.

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Transportation programs have been established for supporting projects and activities aimed at enhancing the environment and encourage use of low impact travel modes. These generally extend beyond efforts required for “customary” environmental mitigation to offset negative project related impacts.

• The Transportation Enhancements (TE) Program (sometimes referred to as Environmental Enhancements) was created by the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA). This 1991 law (and its subsequent reauthorizations) provided a new focus on transportation, offering communities funding opportunities for twelve categories of environmentally enhancing initiatives:

1. Provision of facilities for pedestrians and bicycles.
2. Provision of safety and educational activities for pedestrians and bicyclists.
3. Acquisition of scenic easements and scenic or historic sites (including historic battlefields).
4. Scenic or historic highway programs (including the provision of tourist and welcome center facilities).
5. Landscaping and other scenic beautification.
6. Historic preservation.
7. Rehabilitation and operation of historic transportation buildings, structures, or facilities (including historic railroad facilities and canals).
8. Preservation of abandoned railway corridors (including the conversion and use of the corridors for pedestrian or bicycle trails).
9. Inventory, control, and removal of outdoor advertising.
10. Archaeological planning and research.
11. Environmental mitigation
    1. to address water pollution due to highway runoff; or
    2. reduce vehicle-caused wildlife mortality while maintaining habitat connectivity.
12. Establishment of transportation museums.

TE funds also may be used for workforce development, training, and education under 23 U.S.C. 504(e), provided the activity specifically benefits eligible TE activities.

FHWA Guidance on Transportation Enhancement Activities (Updated October 2008) provides detailed information on funding eligibility and program processes.  The National Transportation Enhancements Clearinghouse provides instructions on the basics of the TE program and access to extensive state-specific information about State Transportation Enhancement Program Coordinators, project selection procedures, policies, criteria for matching funds, and a photo gallery. The Clearinghouse also provides a useful guide “Enhancing America's Communities - A Guide to Transportation Enhancements” (third edition), presented in lay terms and useful to newcomers to the program. A particularly useful section, “Typical Project Development Process” provides clear guidance on how the process works, including environmental streamlining measures available for TE projects.  

For roadway enhancements, of particular importance is support by surrounding communities as well as the “owner” of the road or street, who has engineering, operational and maintenance responsibilities.  Additional guidance relating to the TE program can be found on FHWA’s Transportation Enhancement Activities Website, including the following:

• TE Questions and Answers 
• Transit Enhancements Administered by the Federal Transit Administration 
• FHWA Transportation Enhancements and FTA Transit Enhancements Compared 

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The National Scenic Byways Program administered by the FHWA under the authority of SAFETEA-LU Section(s): 1101(a)(12), 1802 recognizes roads having outstanding scenic, historic, cultural, natural, recreational, and archaeological qualities and provides for designation of these roads as National Scenic Byways, All-American Roads, or America's Byways.  Since 1992, the National Scenic Byways Program has funded almost 1,500 projects for State and nationally designated byway routes in 48 states.  The FHWA Fact Sheet on Scenic Byways provides a summary of the current program.  Funds are eligible for:

1. An activity related to the planning, design, or development of a State or Indian tribe scenic byway program;
2. Development and implementation of a byway corridor management plan;
3. Safety improvements to accommodate increased traffic; improvements that enhance access; protection of resources adjacent to the byway;
4. Development and implementation of a marketing program;
5. Development and provision of tourist implementation; and construction of bicycle and pedestrian facilities, interpretive facilities, overlooks and other enhancements for byway travelers.

America's Byways® markets the collection of 126 distinct and diverse roads designated by the U.S. Secretary of Transportation. America's Byways include the National Scenic Byways and All-American Roads. It provides detailed information on the program and results achieved.

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The Recreational Trails Program is an assistance program of the Department of Transportation's Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Federal transportation funds benefit recreation by making funds available to the states for development and maintenance of recreational trails and trail-related facilities for both non-motorized and motorized recreational trail uses.

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FHWA Bicycle and Pedestrian Programs promote bicycle and pedestrian transportation accessibility, use, and safety. It issues guidance and is responsible for overseeing compliance with requirements in legislation.  Each state has a Bicycle and Pedestrian Coordinator in its State Department of Transportation to promote and facilitate the increased use of nonmotorized transportation, including developing facilities for the use of pedestrians and bicyclists and public educational, promotional, and safety programs for using such facilities.

Other resources such as the Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center provide information on a wide variety of engineering, encouragement, education, and enforcement topics. The Center was established with funding from the U.S. DOT and is operated by the University of North Carolina Highway Safety Research Center, in cooperation with the Association of Pedestrian and Bicycle Professionals.

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Federal

• Guidance and direction on environmental enhancement has broadly evolved through transportation authorization legislation, executive orders, and several official Federal Highway Administration policies and initiatives.
  • Surface Transportation and Uniform Relocation Assistance Act of 1987 (1987) – Encouraged use of native wildflowers for landscaping.
  • Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act ISTEA (1991) – Created the Transportation Enhancements Program, broadening the Federal transportation focus from constructing roads to provide diverse surface transportation options to enhance the environment.
  • Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (1998) – Expanded list of activities eligible for transportation enhancement funds; expanded/ clarified Surface Transportation Program (STP) eligibilities, such as environmental provisions (natural habitat mitigation, stormwater retrofit, and anti-icing and de-icing).
  • Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (2005) – SAFETEA-LU retains and increases funding for environmental programs of TEA-21 and adds new programs focused on the environment. SAFETEA-LU includes significant new environmental requirements for the planning process; authorizes the Secretary of Transportation to consider the FHWA report, "Flexibility in Highway Design" and strengthens application of Context Sensitive Solutions in establishing standards to be used on the National Highway System (NHS); adds new eligible categories for Transportation Enhancement Program; expands eligibility for retrofit environmental restoration and pollution abatement (i.e. stormwater treatment measures) beyond the STP to also include the NHS program. It also provides that both NHS and STP funds may be used for stand-alone projects for retrofits to address water pollution or environmental degradation caused "wholly or partially by a transportation facility."
  • Executive Order 13274 - “Environmental Stewardship and Transportation Infrastructure Project Reviews” – Signed in 2002 by President Bush, this executive order states that “executive departments and agencies shall take appropriate actions, to the extent consistent with applicable law and available resources, to promote environmental stewardship in the Nation's transportation system and expedite environmental reviews of high-priority transportation infrastructure projects.”
  • FHWA Vital Few Environmental Goal – This 2002 policy sets expectations, measures, and methods for demonstrating environmental stewardship and advancing an improved/ efficient environmental review process. It encourages action on opportunities to enhance environmental protection and encourage partnerships that promote ecosystem conservation or encourage broader mitigation strategies that seek corridor or watershed based approaches.
  • Exemplary Ecosystem Initiatives – In 2002 the FHWA identified ecosystem conservation as one of three performance objectives under the agency's "vital few" goal of Environmental Streamlining and Stewardship. FHWA agreed to identify a minimum of 30 exemplary ecosystem initiatives in at least 20 States or Federal Lands Highway divisions by September 2007. The agency also developed specific criteria for selecting the initiatives. The exemplary ecosystem initiatives are summarized on the FHWA website at the link above.
  • FHWA Environmental Policy Statement - The 1994 policy states: “The FHWA, with its transportation, environmental, and community partners, will work vigorously to protect and, where practical, to enhance the natural environment and to preserve neighborhood and community values”.

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State
Examples of policies and initiatives which demonstrate implementation of environmental enhancement include:

• New Mexico DOT – Guiding principles on environmental responsibility describes commitment to the principle of an environmentally responsible transportation system. The "Commitment to Environmental and Energy Action," supports stewardship of the environment and development of alternative energy sources for this and future generations.
• New York State Department of Transportation's  Environmental Initiative protects, restores and enhances the environment. The agency-wide program fully integrates environmental concerns into planning and scoping, right through design, construction, operation and maintenance by instituting its environmental stewardship program, the Environmental Initiative. This Initiative includes conducting maintenance, equipment management and construction activities appropriately to prevent and/or minimize adverse impacts upon the environment and to enhance the environment whenever possible. This link provides access to 17 documents, which provide information on how NYSDOT implements environmental stewardship through its environmental initiatives program. The video production, "Better Than Before..."   showcases NYSDOT’s strong commitment to preserving and enhancing the environment through community partnerships.
• New Jersey DOT – The state agency’s mission statement commits it to environmental stewardship.  “The employees of the New Jersey Department of Transportation are committed stewards of the environment as we work on improving the quality of life of its citizens.”   Context Sensitive Design is an important tool for achieving environmental enhancement on projects in New Jersey.
• Vermont DOT (Vtrans) Environmental Stewardship Ethic Policy – Vermont’s policy states that: “VTrans will fulfill its environmental responsibility through an Agency-wide environmental stewardship ethic. This ethic will be guided by principles and practices that will apply to all of the agency’s business activities.”  Guidance on Principles and Practices are provided.
• AASHTO’s Center for Environmental Excellence and the National Cooperative Highway Research Program produced "Environmental Stewardship Practices, Procedures and Policies for Highway Construction and Maintenance" which provides extensive information on environmental enhancement practices by DOTs nationwide.

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Associations and Non-Governmental Organizations

• Examples of environmental enhancement policies and initiatives adopted by organizations include the following:
  • The Environmental Council of the States (ECOS)
  • Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) - gives information on environmental management systems (EMSs), green construction and recycling, LEED® Green Building Rating System, and AGC–EPA partnership (National Environmental Performance Track Program).
  • Green Highways Partnership - (GHP) is a voluntary, public-private initiative that seeks to incorporate environmental stewardship and streamlining into all aspects of the highway lifecycle through concepts such integrated planning, regulatory flexibility, and market-based rewards.

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