Past NGA Center transportation work has focused on the following areas.

Growing Efficiently
As states grow economically and physically, the costs of growth can put a strain on their resources. The burden of providing housing, schools, and other infrastructure frequently outpaces revenues generated by new growth. In response, governors have become more strategic about how they use and leverage existing financial and infrastructure resources and have employed a variety of tactics tailored to meeting the needs of their individual states. The benefits of these strategies have included the cost savings of greater efficiency and restoration of the economic competitiveness of older, existing communities.

Community Design and Development
Through the Creating Great Places NGA Chair’s initiative in 2001-2002, the NGA Center assisted governors in creating policies that met their housing and community development needs in the context of a state's economic development and regional growth strategies. Issues addressed through the initiative were encompassed in two broad categories: Community Design, which helped governors develop broad statewide visions of preferred patterns of growth, encouraged more efficient and effective collaboration among the many state agencies involved with land use and growth planning, and created more effective support and guidance to local government, and Health Communities, which helped governors develop strategies that support walkable and bikeable communities; promote better access to healthy food options; protect air and water quality; and encourage greater collaboration among state experts.