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FAILING INFRASTRUCTURE CANNOT SUPPORT A HEALTHY ECONOMY

Decades of underfunding and inattention have jeopardized the ability of our nation's infrastructure to support our economy and facilitate our way of life. The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) today released its 2009 Report Card for America's Infrastructure-assigning a cumulative grade of D to the nation's infrastructure and noting a five-year investment need of $2.2 trillion from all levels of government and the private sector. Since ASCE's last assessment in 2005 there has been little change in the condition of the nation's roads, bridges, drinking water systems and other public works, and the cost of improvement has increased by more than half a trillion dollars.

MEDIA ADVISORY, January 23, 2009

Crumbling Infrastructure Cannot Support a Healthy Economy
Civil Engineers to Release Report Card for America's Infrastructure

WASHINGTON-In the midst of an ongoing debate about economic stimulus funding and long-term revitalization and upkeep of our nation's infrastructure, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) will release the 2009 Report Card for America's Infrastructure. The report examines and evaluates the current state of the country's roads, bridges, aviation systems, drinking water, schools and more, including, for the first time, an evaluation of the nation's levees.

America's infrastructure is in dire need of proper, sustained attention, as evidenced by ASCE's 2005 Report Card for America's Infrastructure which gave the nation's infrastructure a grade of "D" and called for a five-year investment of $1.6 trillion. On January 28, ASCE will present its first new grades since 2005, solutions for infrastructure improvement and a projected cost to improve the nation's infrastructure.