U.S. infrastructure gets near-failing grade

U.S. infrastructure gets near-failing grade As Congress fashions a huge economic recovery plan that includes spending for on-the-shelf infrastructure projects, comes word that the nation’s infrastructure is in even worse shape than thought.
   The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) on Wednesday issued a report giving the condition of U.S. infrastructure a collective grade of D. Solid waste got the highest grade of any system in the country with a mediocre C.
   The organization of professional engineers estimated that the nation has a $2.2 trillion backlog of work, up from $1.6 trillion in 2005, just to repair and maintain deteriorating highways, bridges, dams, schools, transit and other infrastructure systems.
   The D average is the same score the society gave the nation’s infrastructure in its last report in 2005.
   “In 2009, all signs point to an infrastructure that is poorly maintained, unable to meet current and future demands, and in some cases, unsafe,” the group said.
   The United States has seen several catastrophic failures of infrastructure in recent years, including the levee breaches in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, an underground sewer blast in New York City, and a water main break that turned a Washington suburban street into a roaring river.
   To reverse decades of neglect, the United States needs strong federal leadership for a national vision about the importance of investing in infrastructure to maintain economic competitiveness, the group said.
   It also recommended that federal, regional and state governments prioritize plans in accordance with the national vision to focus on achieving freight and passenger mobility, intermodality, water use and environmentally sustainable and resilient systems. Government also needs to do a better job of assessing life cycle costs as infrastructure is built or rehabilitated. And it called for increased investment from all types of financing sources.
   The U.S. surface transportation and aviation systems have declined during the past four years, with aviation and transit dropping from a D+ to D, and roads dropping from a D to a D-.
      ASCE said that one in four bridges are either structurally deficient or functionally obsolete. Bridges, which received a score of C, require a $17 billion annual investment to improve existing conditions compared to the current construction and maintenance level of $10.5 billion.
   The rail system got a C because of increasing bottlenecks, mixing of passenger and freight traffic and a $200 billion investment need to meet expected volume growth.
   Inland waterways received a grade of D-. The cost to replace the present system of locks is $125 billion.
   Roads received the same score. ASCE said the nation needs to spend $186 billion annually to substantially improve the road network. Current spending is about $70 billion across all forms of government.
   The need stands in contrast to the $27 billion to $30 billion being considered for highways and bridges in the current stimulus package. Some critics say that the overall infrastructure component of the stimulus plan has received short shrift compared to money dedicated for tax cuts and other social programs.
   The ASCE’s report card on infrastructure is available here. ' Eric Kulisch