Can you hold your own on our infrastructure quiz? Let’s find out!
July 1st, 2015 | By: America's Infrastructure Report Card
“Test your Infrastructure I.Q.” is a quiz to help you learn more about our nation’s infrastructure. The quiz is a fun, interactive tool and covers 16 categories of American infrastructure: energy, schools, public parks & recreation, transit, roads, rail, ports, inland waterways, bridges, aviation, wastewater, solid waste, levees, hazardous waste, drinking water and dams. If you get a question wrong, you can find the answer and maybe learn a few other facts as well. What are you waiting on? It’s time to test your infrastructure I.Q.!
We're Telling You First — the Save America's Infrastructure App Is Here!
May 11th, 2015 | By: Becky Moylan
While around these parts it’s infrastructure 24/7/365, national Infrastructure Week now in its third year is a great opportunity to highlight the importance of infrastructure to the economy and the great strides being made to prioritize investment and renewal into our roads, bridges, ports, water pipes and other infrastructure.
As part of Infrastructure Week, today ASCE is releasing a new phone app. Help save America’s roads, water pipes, airports, and more by telling your elected officials to get to work on raising America’s infrastructure grades. Whether it’s an issue in your state or nationally, the new app will remind you when it’s critical for your elected leaders to hear from you.
Enter your zip code to find out how many structurally deficient bridges there are in your county and how your state compares to the nation overall. The app for iPhone and Android includes infographics, videos, national and state data, and news. It then enables you to take all that information and do something about it in the Action Center. Through the app you can contact your elected leaders with just a few taps and let them know that you expect their leadership in making infrastructure renewal a priority.
Our nation’s infrastructure most recently received a “D+” in the Report Card for America’s Infrastructure. This app gives you the opportunity to share the stats of our aging infrastructure with your social networks and elected leaders, to help increase awareness of these often “out of sight, out of mind” issues.
So download the new app right now for your iPhone or Android phone and join in (or continue) the effort to save America’s infrastructure as a way to celebrate Infrastructure Week from anywhere.
Tags: Infrastructure Week, phone app, Report Card for America's Infrastructure
2 Comments »
San Francisco Strengthens Water Pipelines Against Earthquake Vulnerabilities
December 23rd, 2014 | By: Becky Moylan
With a D+ cumulative grade for our nation’s infrastructure and the federal Highway Trust Funding heading toward a fiscal cliff in May 2015, the great infrastructure innovations happening around the country are often overlooked. The recently updated 2013 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure highlights 20 new successful projects and initiatives that each improve our nation’s dams, bridges, roads, drinking water delivery system and other infrastructure. One such groundbreaking project is the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s Water Safety Improvement Program. While utilities nationwide are grappling with aging infrastructure, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) is making prudent and sustainable investments in their regional water system. For nearly a century, the Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System has been providing 2.6 million residents and businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area with reliable, high-quality drinking water. Not only is the system past its useful life, but major pipelines cross over three of the nation’s most active fault lines, making the system vulnerable to interruption in the event of an earthquake. For the SFPUC, rebuilding the water system was a race against time. The Water System Improvement Program (WSIP) launched in 2004 to make the water system more reliable and seismically safe. The $5 billion capital program is one of the largest infrastructure programs in the country, consisting of more than 80 projects in seven California counties. With the WSIP over 80% complete, the Hetch Hetchy Regional Water System is already significantly more redundant and seismically reliable due to the miles of new pipelines and critical tunnels installed to ensure water delivery within 24 hours of an earthquake. The WSIP also includes the Tesla Treatment Facility, which uses ultraviolet-light arrays to disinfect and treat water and is the largest ultraviolet treatment plant in California, as well as the five-mile long Bay Tunnel, which will be the very first tunnel under the San Francisco Bay. Through the WSIP, the SFPUC has invested $300 million in habitat restoration and watershed protection. The WSIP has been nationally recognized as an award-winning program, receiving 26 honors from the American Society of Civil Engineers, American Public Works Association, and others. With this program, the SFPUC has been able to improve system redundancy and service delivery for future generations. Check out the other infrastructure success story case studies by downloading the tablet app for your Android device or iPad. The update also includes the latest state data and updated videos, charts and graphs.Tags: Drinking Water, Report Card for America's Infrastructure
No Comments »
ASCE Past President Flies Over Pittsburgh on 60 Minutes
November 24th, 2014 | By: Becky Moylan
ASCE Past President Andy Herrmann flew over the “city of bridges” with 60 Minutes’ Steve Kroft to highlight America’s aging bridges in a segment that aired Sunday, Nov. 23. Falling apart: America’s neglected infrastructure Herrmann was among several experts interviewed for the piece, including former Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood and Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-OR). While each guest brought different experiences, they all agreed on one thing: the need for increased funding. One in nine bridges in the U.S. are structurally deficient and the gas tax, last increased in 1993, simply cannot fully-fund a 2014 transportation network. As Herrmann said, “It all comes down to funding.” It is now up to Congress to #FixTheTrustFund with a long-term, sustainable funding solution that will address our aging infrastructure.Tags: bridges, highway trust fund, Report Card for America's Infrastructure, roads
1 Comment »
This Week in Infrastructure: Thankful for Ramped-Up Media Interest in Infrastructure Renewal
November 21st, 2014 | By: Olivia Wolfertz
With holiday travel underway and harsh weather already arriving in some regions, the state of our nation’s highways will become even more apparent as thousands of Americans take to the roads to visit family and friends during the Thanksgiving holiday. However, our current D+ in infrastructure and lack of sufficient funding for the Highway Trust Fund don’t promise improvement without Congress taking intentional measures to provide long-term, sustainable funds. Every year, drivers sit idling in traffic for 34 hours longer than they need to because of unnecessary congestion. Congestion is not only aggravating it also costs Americans approximately $101 billion each year in wasted gas. The media recognize that Band-Aids and temporary fixes to the nation’s surface transportation will no longer suffice. More and more media coverage is making the case for a long-term, sustainable funding solution and advocating for increasing revenues. A recent article from USA Today stated that funding our highways should be among Congress’ top five priorities for the year’s end. And the public overwhelmingly agrees. According to a recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, Americans indicated they support increased infrastructure investment for roads and highways even more strongly than tax reform. “This issue affects every community, every user of our system, whether they’re driving, whether they’re using transit in some way,” said Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, “And I don’t see how we can get through this in a good way as a country without Congress coming to the table and actually passing a long-term transportation bill.” Media coverage in Tennessee, Delaware and Wisconsin each highlighted their state’s need for lasting solutions to revitalize their aging infrastructure. And this past week, ASCE members in Montana released their state’s inaugural Infrastructure Report Card, giving Montana an overall infrastructure grade of C-. With winter weather bearing down, increased holiday travel and growing media attention, including ASCE Past President Andy Herrmann’s Nov. 23 interview with 60 Minutes focusing on our nation’s deteriorating infrastructure, Congress should act now to #FixtheTrustFund.Tags: highway trust fund, Report Card for America's Infrastructure, state report card
No Comments »
ASCE Past President Andy Herrmann To Talk Infrastructure with 60 Minutes
November 21st, 2014 | By: Becky Moylan
This Sunday, Nov. 23, ASCE Past President Andrew W. Herrmann, P.E. SECB, F.ASCE, will discuss the state of our nation’s bridges during primetime TV on CBS’ 60 Minutes via a helicopter tour of Pittsburgh. 60 Minutes Video – The roads and bridges Americans drive on every day are in dire need of repair or replacement As the Highway Trust Fund heads once again toward insolvency, 60 Minutes chronicles the need for increased investment across the U.S. with interviews from former Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood and Rep. Earl Blumenauer. Each with a unique perspective on infrastructure, all these guests will echo the same message: #FixTheTrustFund with a long-term, sustainable funding solution. Host a viewing party, set your DVR, and tell your friends and family to tune in at 7:30 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT to see ASCE tell the story behind our nation’s bridges.Tags: 60 minutes, bridges, highway trust fund, infrastructure, Report Card for America's Infrastructure, roads
4 Comments »
Aging Hudson Symbolizes America’s Infrastructure
February 14th, 2014 | By: America's Infrastructure Report Card
Winding up the final leg of his cross country Dire States tour, Dan McNichol made a stop at ASCE headquarters in his vintage Hudson today. Dan’s been on the road since last October sharing the message of America’s aging infrastructure. His 1949 Hudson (nicknamed Mrs. Martin after the original owner) is the perfect metaphor to get the message across. Structurally solid, yet with rust and fading green paint along the edges showcasing years of neglect, you understand that this car has outlived its useful life. It’s functionally obsolete like many of the bridges and roads it’s traveled upon. “The people in Detroit, they get it. They’ve seen the decline.” Dan shared stories of some of the memorable moments along the way with the ASCE staff that came out to meet him. He told us of a small town in Black River Falls, Wisconsin, struggling with a dam that was leaking, driving the water level seriously low. “The town took responsibility for that dam. They taxed themselves and raised the $10 million they needed for the repair.” During his tour, Dan spoke with officials of state departments of transportation, chambers of commerce and many college and university community members. He quoted statistics from ASCE’s Report Card for America’s Infrastructure to help inform his audiences. Dan was inspired by the creativity and enthusiasm of the students, and touched to hear the memories of the old-timers who reminisced about the glory days of America’s infrastructure. He felt strong support to rebuild our infrastructure from everyone he met. Dan’s story is a great way to help promote the impact of civil engineering in our communities. To learn more about the lessons Dan learned along the way, watch his interview below. It’s the first segment in our new 12-part video series, ASCE Interchange. Watch for a new episode each month — see them at asce.org/interchange. ASCE Interchange is brought to you by Contech Engineered Solutions, a leading provider of site solutions for the civil engineering industry. Contech’s portfolio includes bridges, drainage erosion control, retaining wall, sanitary, stormwater and wastewater treatment products. For more info, visit www.ContechES.com or call 800-338-1122 For more tips promoting the Report Card, view the online outreach toolkit. Interested in doing more with the Report Card but want to speak with someone from the Infrastructure Initiatives team before you get started? Email ASCE or call 202-789-7850. Have you tapped into the collective memory in your community? Are there local events where you can help share the story of why we need to come together to restore our nation’s infrastructure? Is there a good symbol in your community you can build the story around?Tags: ASCE Interchange, Dire States, infrastructure, Report Card for America's Infrastructure
1 Comment »
