Jim Jennings, 703-295-6406, 540-272-1452 (cell), jjennings@asce.org
Thursday, November 03, 2011
Reston, Va. – The failure in the U.S. Senate today of the Rebuild America’s Jobs Act, which would have provided a short-term infusion of transportation investment, underscores the need for strategic, long-term investment in our nation’s infrastructure.
Our infrastructure, from roads and bridges to water systems and rail, is the most basic element of a strong economy. But it is plagued by under-investment, a trend that is creating a drag on the U.S. economy, hurting our competitiveness and costing thousands of American jobs. This past summer, the American Society of Civil Engineers released a groundbreaking report which found that inadequate investment in transportation infrastructure will suppress GDP growth by nearly $900 billion by the year 2020. The same report found that our country’s transportation infrastructure is facing a funding gap of more than $800 billion between now and 2020.
This type of a funding gap can only be filled with long-term, sustainable investment, coupled with program reforms that create performance measures and set priorities. It is this type of action that ASCE hopes the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will take during its mark-up scheduled for November 9.
With a strong bill that includes adequate funding levels and program reforms, Congress can take action to get our transportation sector moving again, grow the economy, enhance our competitiveness, and create jobs.
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Note to Editors:
ASCE’s Failure to Act, The Economic Impact of Current Investment Trends in Surface Transportation Infrastructure report can be found here.