Infrastructure in the News: Issues abound during Infrastructure Week
May 20th, 2016 | By: Olivia Wolfertz
With Infrastructure Week raising awareness of the important role our roads, bridges, transit and water infrastructure play, this week’s news headlines have been powerful reminders of our need for further action. ASCE’s Failure to Act economic report continues to garner news headlines, emphasizing our infrastructure investment needs. CNBC, and C-SPAN covered the economic impact of failing to invest in infrastructure in our country, and the importance of all levels of government being involved in restoring it. Investment needs are seen in action every day when infrastructure breaks. Transit needs across the country are manifesting themselves through subway dysfunctions and disruptions. This week there was a large fire in the NYC subway that impacted thousands of train passengers’ morning commutes. The DC Metro released its SafeTrack Plan to address safety recommendations and repair the Metrorail system in an expedited timeframe. It is also no secret that deteriorating roads have a very real impact on our daily commutes. In an editorial this week, a Syracuse writer noted that it cost her nearly $200 to replace the right front tire on her car that blew out when she hit a pothole on her way to work. And AAA reported that 70 percent of motorists who plan on traveling this summer are concerned about poor roadway conditions or being stuck in traffic. As if that weren’t enough, a bridge collapsed in Oklahoma City because a truck driver did not realize he did not have sufficient clearance, causing road shutdowns and costing an estimated $50,000 in debris removal alone. Improving our nation’s infrastructure only comes when it is prioritized and properly funded. Even though Infrastructure Week, is coming to a close you can still share that #InfrastructureMatters by sending a letter to your elected officials.Infrastructure in the News: Invest Now or Pay Later
April 15th, 2016 | By: Olivia Wolfertz
Water and transit have each had their fair share of media attention this week. Water Week has highlighted our nation’s water infrastructure conditions and transit hearings and incidents are reinforcing investment needs. Water Week highlighted diverse needs across the country as more than 100 water and wastewater utility managers, operators and engineers visited Washington, D.C. to advocate for more federal investment in water infrastructure. There have been many articles about the state of our nation’s drinking water, water main ruptures, and water infrastructure overall, further pointing to the need for solid investment and maintenance. Transit needs also continue to dominate the news. While transit centers in Brazil, Saudi Arabia, India and China are building new subways, subways in even our wealthiest cities are suffering from lack of maintenance. In our nation’s capital, the Metro subway system has been encountering many issues lately that have prompted Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) to work towards a diligent plan of repair and maintenance. In order to provide adequate maintenance, Metro needs $25 billion over the next 10 years to run the system. Yet Congress denied Metro increased funding to put towards Metro repairs. It is important to have a holistic view of infrastructure, because poor transit and water infrastructure affects our competitiveness as a nation overall. An article in MSN explained how declining quality, reliability and safety of our transportation infrastructure affects business costs and job growth. In just a few weeks, ASCE will be releasing its updated Failure to Act Economic Study to reflect the latest numbers on how failing to invest in infrastructure is affecting our nation’s competitiveness. In order to meet the increasing demands of our nation’s water and transit needs, it is important that local, state and federal governments work together to find long-term, sustainable funding that will revitalize these sectors.Time ticking away for Highway Trust Fund fix, but there is still hope
July 17th, 2015 | By: Olivia Wolfertz
Despite another action-packed week on the Hill, a long-term, sustainable funding solution for our nation’s transportation network still is not final. While the House voted for a short-term extension until December, there’s still hope that the Senate’s multi-year bill, the DRIVE Act, will prevail before the July 31 deadline. The House passed an $8.1 billion plan to fund the Highway Trust Fund (HTF) through December 18 by dedicating airport security fees and adjusting tax rules to keep the program solvent. While a short-term funding patch is better than shutting down the program and canceling projects, the House proposal is far short of the ideal: a well-funded, six-year highway and transit bill. Furthermore, the December punt would restart the countdown clock towards finding a long-term solution and extend construction uncertainty for five more months. The Senate will move towards debate on its six-year plan, the DRIVE Act, on Tuesday, July 21. Should that vote succeed, Senate leaders will then quickly work to compile the remaining policy pieces necessary to form a comprehensive six-year road, bridge and transit bill before the July 31 legislative deadline. In recent days, senators have stated publicly that they are not optimistic about being able to fully fund the six-year DRIVE Act by July 31, but they have indicated they will try and generate as much funding as possible to get the maximum length while still growing the program. In a roundtable discussion with reporters on Wednesday, Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said that, “All the politics have all shaped around getting back to baseline funding, as if baseline funding is going to solve our problems. Meanwhile, the public is seeing conditions get worse and worse and worse, and so they’re wondering, ‘Why am I paying into this system and it’s getting worse?’” ASCE’s Failure to Act Transportation Study supports this claim. While Congress is attempting to agree on the right funding solution, states are paying the price for Washington’s lack of action. On Tuesday, The USDOT notified states that federal funding for state transportation projects will run critically low starting sometime in August. USDOT also announced road and bridge conditions in each state, utilizing ASCE data to make the case for investment. States like Florida, New Hampshire, Ohio, Kentucky, Texas, New York, New Jersey, Mississippi, Oklahoma and others are beginning to realize how lack of federal funding and certainty affects their state’s infrastructure needs. Without a long-term funding solution, state infrastructure projects will continue to be negatively impacted. With only two weeks left before the deadline to reauthorize the federal surface transportation program, it is more critical than ever before that Congress act quickly to pass a multi-year bill with a long-term funding solution before July 31. Write a letter, call your Senators’ and Representatives’ offices, and tweet using #FixTheTrustFund to remind your representation in Washington that they have a job to do and a deadline fast approaching.The Excitement of Infrastructure
March 2nd, 2015 | By: Becky Moylan
HBO’s Last Week Tonight with John Oliver “proposed” a movie on the importance of infrastructure maintenance.
Tags: failure to act, gas tax, highway trust fund
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ASCE Makes The Case For Infrastructure at NCSL
August 15th, 2012 | By: America's Infrastructure Report Card
Legislators from around the country gather every year at the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) Legislative Summit to talk about policies that work in the real world. State legislators are literally hunting for ideas they can bring home to their communities to help them bolster their local economies and create jobs. Among the key sessions, was a dynamic panel on creating jobs through infrastructure investment. Focused on the reality that construction costs are rising yet states needs to borrow at affordable rates, this session’s speakers discussed both the polices that work and the next wave of potential investments that legislators can focus on now. To start the panel off, ASCE President Andrew Herrmann P.E., M.ASCE began the discussion by highlighting the clear case for investing today using the Failure to Act economic studies which show the high costs to the US, jobs, and businesses if necessary infrastructure investments are postponed. Deb Miller, former Secretary of Transportation, Kansas, now with Cambridge Systematics, Inc., and Illinois Senate President John J. Cullerton highlighted how accountability and clear expectations allowed several key investments to move forward in their states and how these projects supported local businesses and the state’s economic goals. Geoffrey Buswick, Standard & Poor’s, touched on the financing options available and the reality that borrowing options may change as the economy recovers. Through our participation in meetings like this, ASCE is able to interact with leading policymakers from around the country, and particularly those legislators who have been leaders in their states on infrastructure issues. As sates continue to face fiscal challenges it’s encouraging that state legislators like those gathered in Chicago continue to seek solutions to the infrastructure deficit.
