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within importing countries that are then locally assembled, combined with locally sourced components and mate- rials. Field service and support is then largely carried out by the local agent with a manufacturer's rep/export agent in support as a secondary tier. In the U.S., for the heavy-duty transit market it is a support network that is centrally run directly by the manufacturer. As a result of these factors, combined with the fact that the U.S. market is a vastly smaller segment of the global bus market, make both entry in the U.S. as well as exports from the U.S. diffi cult. In fact, the history of the U.S. bus and rail markets is replete with a revolving door of offshore manufacturers that have en- tered it only to then have exited a few years later. Regarding efforts to boost U.S. ex- ports, the one program designed to foster technical exchange among U.S. companies as well as provide access to market information was the Interna- tional Mass Transit Program. It started in 1995 under the TEA-21 legislation. However, the program ended this year as MAP-21's language abolished the program. GROWING THE INDUSTRY There is one major policy that has shown a positive impact on exports and expanding the economic base over the past two decades. That policy is stable, increasing guaranteed federal fund- ing, the kind that the industry enjoyed through TEA-21 and SAFETEA-LU. Ac- cording to testimony in Congressional hearings by Jeffrey Parker, an industry analyst, these stable guarantees allowed manufacturers to plan business expan- sion and new research and develop- ment programs that made them more competitive. The rest, such as tightening Buy America or any other market-cen- tric mandates and/or incentives, have al- ways had less. In a context that is calling for the same or less investment in the near term, additional restrictions in the name of protection might even backfi re. In the current hyper-partisan Con- gress, however, funding guarantees in Dual-Vision™ XC Higher Capacity in a Smaller Package Rosco Dual-Vision™ XC has the capacity to correct unsafe driver behavior through its ability to continuously record video and provide instant driver feedback. The DVXC is the only windshield based two (2) camera continuous and event recording device which has 160+ hours of continuous recording capability and the ability to precisely calculate and save three types of events (G-force, Speed, Panic Button). With no monthly fees, free firmware and software upgrades, plus powerful DV-Pro™ fleet management database software, Dual-Vision™ XC is revolutionizing windshield based recording, again. For Information Call: 1-800-227-2095 A Century of Automotive Vision Safety Visit Online At: www.roscovision.com SEPTEMBER • OCTOBER 2012 mETRO mAGAZINE > 67 MAP-21 are nowhere near as strong as previous surface transportation bills, largely due to the projected shortfalls in the Mass Transit Account of the High- way Trust Fund. The fact that this bill covers only the next two years com- pounds business planning and invest- ment challenges. Such issues are timely as the White House convenes on economic growth and as the nation steps up the debate on the proper role of government in the economy. At least from the perspective of public transportation policy, the an- swer is fairly clear: grow the pie, rather than coming up with more ways to slice one that continues to be the same size or smaller. Cliff Henke, a contributing editor to METRO, is senior analyst at PB. His views herein are solely his own. We See Everything...