(Washington, DC) - On Monday, October 5th, Congresswoman Corrine Brown, the Chair of the House Transportation Subcommittee on Railroads, along with Congressman John Mica, the Ranking Member of the House Committee on Transportation, and Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, will be hosting Ray H. LaHood, the United States Secretary of Transportation for a discussion on transportation issues affecting Florida.  The discussion will be held on Monday, October 5th, from 1:00 p.m. to 2:15 p.m., at METROPLAN Orlando, located at 315 East Robinson Street in Orlando, Florida.  The event will provide Central Florida residents with an outstanding opportunity to hear from the nation’s premier transportation official, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, as well as two extremely influential and senior delegation Members of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, about key transportation issues facing Florida and the nation.  The panelists will take questions from the media immediately following the presentation, from 2:15-2:30 p.m.

"Fifty years ago, the highway system was greatly expanded under the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 during the Eisenhower administration.  At that time, President Eisenhower realized that for our country to be competitive globally, we needed to implement an interstate, nationwide transportation network that moves our citizens to their destinations quickly, and can allow our businesses to move their products efficiently.  Today, the United States is once again at a crossroad.  We need to augment our transportation network to incorporate not merely additional highway lanes and roads, but by making investments in public transportation, such as adding interstate and nation-wide high speed rail lines, and dramatically increasing our local commuter rail systems in cities and states across the nation.  If we fail to do this, our nation will continue to lag behind other advanced nations, many who already have extremely advanced and heavily used public transportation systems, such as the TGV in France, the AVE in Spain, and the Shinkansen in Japan.  As the Chair of the Railroad Subcommittee, I will continue to utilize all of my energy and resources to ensure that the United States regains its competitive advantage in the arena of public transportation," said Congresswoman Brown.

Who:
Unites States Transportation Secretary Ray H. LaHood
Congresswoman Corrine Brown (FL-3)
Congressman John Mica (FL-7)
Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer
Congressman Alan Grayson (FL-8)
Congresswoman Suzanne Kosmas (FL-24) 
Other Local and State Elected Officials

What:
Discussion with Transportation Secretary LaHood, State and Local Elected Officials, and other transportation experts 

Where:
METROPLAN Orlando, located at 315 East Robinson Street in Orlando, Florida

When:
Monday, October 5th 1:00 p.m. – 2:15 p.m. 

PRESS AVAILABILITY TO ASK QUESTIONS IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWING PRESENTATIONS FROM 2:15-2:30 p.m.

Contact:
David Simon (202-225-0123) or Ronita Sanders (407-872-0656) with Congresswoman Corrine Brown
Maureen Knightly with Secretary LaHood (202-366-4570

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