A day after Kansas University researchers released a report outlining nine threats to transportation, along comes another group with its own take on national challenges and suggested solutions.But be warned: The new report comes from a fairly obvious advocacy position.The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials’ new report, “America’s Top Five Transportation Headaches — and Their Remedies,” mentions five of the same problems included in KU’s own report.Here’s what the association — which bills itself as the “Voice of Transportation” representing state transportation departments in all 50 states, plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico — came up with (followed by KU’s take in parentheses):• Crumbling roads and bridges. (KU calls it Deteriorating Infrastructure and Capacity.)• Growing traffic jams. (KU: Congestion.)• Crowded transit systems and rail cars. (KU: Congestion.)• An unacceptably high rate of traffic crashes and fatalities. (KU was more specific, with two categories: Driver Distraction and Aging Drivers.)• Insufficient funding. (KU: Finance and Investment.)While the KU report ventured into other areas, including global warming, fuel prices and disjointed transportation planning (something the states certainly wouldn’t agree with), an even larger difference between the reports surfaced in the association’s list of “remedies.”While KU researchers propose a wide variety of potential solutions for a long list of identified problems and challenges, the association clearly is focused on grabbing a slice of President-elect Barack Obama’s potential economic-stimulus money — money association members want to use to build their way out of deteriorating or obsolete bridges, congested roads and other problems.Among the association’s observations, in its report:”Every $1 billion invested in highway construction would support approximately 27,800 jobs.””Every dollar invested in the nation’s highway system yields $5.69 in economic benefits in reduced delays, improved safety, reduced emissions, and lower vehicle operating and maintenance costs.”The association’s report also includes support for transit investments.”Fast relief for transportation headaches is one of the immediate benefits we can see from the economic recovery legislation being sought by President-elect Obama,” said John Horsley, the association’s executive director, in announcing the report. “States are ready to move thousands of ready-to-go highway projects that can support 1.8 million jobs.”Long-term, these transportation investments will build or preserve assets that will help the economy for years.”As reported after the KU report’s release Tuesday, KU researchers see things with more detached eyes, ones that certainly envision worthwhile spending on infrastructure and transportation projects but aren’t quite so focused on build, build, build.Among broad changes KU researchers would like to see, all of which likely would face a bumpy reception from state highway departments:• Create regional bodies to integrate state transportation departments and construction projects, and encourage pooling of resources.• Authorize a national “transportation czar” to create an integrated transportation plan for the country, not just individual states.• “Change the culture of transportation from the ‘more is better’ and ‘if we have the money we need to build it’ mentality, and see where money can be saved by better planning and integration of existing transportation networks, whether on land (roads, rail), air or waterways and seas.”• Encourage creation of “extra-governmental consulting bodies” — comprised of representatives from industry, advocacy groups and science communities — to advise policymakers about the most efficient and necessary long-term planning goals for transportation.And just think: Obama still needs to formally propose his stimulus plan, Congress still needs to consider it, and someone — likely each state transportation department — still would need to decide exactly what to spend the money on, should the stimulus plan materialize.Looks like a good subject for another report.