Transportation authority

{{Short description|Government agency responsible for transportation-related matters}} {{Use British English |date=February 2024}} {{Use dmy dates |date=February 2024}} {{More citations needed |date=February 2024}} [[File:Usdot headquarters.jpg|thumb|alt=Headquarters of the U.S. Department of Transportation|Headquarters of the [[United States Department of Transportation]]]]

A '''transportation authority''', '''transportation agency''', or '''transportation department''' is a [[government agency]] that regulates, manages, or administers [[transport]]ation-related matters, such as [[Road|roads]], [[transportation infrastructure]], [[traffic management]], or [[traffic code]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Department of Transportation |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/legal/Department%20of%20Transportation |website=merriam-webster.com |publisher=Merriam-Webster Inc. |access-date=15 February 2025 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Black |first1=Henry Campbell |last2=Garner |first2=Bryan Andrew |title=Black's law dictionary |date=2009 |publisher=West |location=St. Paul, Minn |isbn=978-0314199492 |page=502 |edition=9th}}</ref>

Transportation authorities go by a number of names, such as "[[department of transportation]]" or "[[List of ministries of transport by country|ministry of transport]]", among others. They often manage other government agencies that oversee specific fields of transportation, such as [[Civil aviation authority|civil aviation authorities]], [[Highway authority|highway authorities]], [[logistics]] [[Regulatory agency|regulators]], [[rail transport]] regulators, [[maritime transport]] regulators, and transportation safety boards.

Some transportation authorities, such as [[Greater Vancouver]]'s [[TransLink (British Columbia)|TransLink]], have the power to impose [[Excise|excise taxes]] ([[Fuel tax|fuel taxes]]) on [[gasoline]], [[diesel fuel]], and other [[motor fuel]]s.

In [[North America]], the term "transportation authority" is often used to refer to [[public transport]] agencies operating [[bus]]es and [[rapid transit]] in [[metropolitan area]]s, otherwise referred to as [[Transit district|transit districts]] or [[Passenger transport executive|passenger transport executives]]. Examples of such '''public transport authorities''' (or '''public transit authorities''') include the [[Metropolitan Transportation Authority|New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority]], the [[Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority]], and [[Greater Montreal]]’s [[Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain]].

==References== {{reflist}}

[[Category:Transport authorities| ]] [[Category:Public transport]] [[Category:Traffic management]]