Vice President Al Gore is the only candidate to put forward a distinct set of transportation directives. Although very general, his goals focus mainly on rail transit. The Democratic candidate supports increasing federal funding for new transit rail projects and for upgrading existing rail systems. He would offer unspecified financial incentives for the redevelopment of neighborhoods and business and shopping districts around rail stations and added federal grant monies for rail station improvements. The Vice President is committed to developing high-speed rail corridors across the country and told the Associated Press that he would "fight for new grants for Amtrak." A June 29th Associated Press report on Gore's proposals suggested the range of new federal investments in transit would equal $25 billion.

In addition, Gore has proposed federal investments to aid the conversion of public and school bus fleets to cleaner fuels. Answering a League of American Bicyclists' survey, the Vice President voiced consistent support for "giving local communities flexibility to use federal highway funds for alternative transportation projects" and said he believed that Americans would choose to cycle to work or shop if given "useful, practical, and safe facilities" and that "encouraging more people to bike will result in fewer motorists on the road." Neither Governor Bush nor Ralph Nader responded to the League's questionnaire.

The theme of Governor George W. Bush's answers to questions of transportation policy seems to be that decisions on transportation spending and land management should rest with state and/or local government. However, news sources report him speaking favorably regarding public/private partnerships in financing transportation improvements, while others suggest that he supports the "streamlining" federal environmental review processes for transportation and other construction projects. He has also proposed relieving congestion in metropolitan areas through "appropriate" highway expansion. In the same AP article on Amtrak, Governor Bush called the national railroad network an "economic lifeline" and a "crucial component of our public transportation system." He also said he supports current efforts by the legislature to "make Amtrak more efficient and competitive."

Ralph Nader has spoken little about specific transportation initiatives. However the Green Party candidate has named "massive investment in roads and highways at the expense of public transit" and "federal subsidies for suburban roads" as prime causes of sprawl and traffic jams. He would increase support for public transit as part of an effort to turn back suburban sprawl.