Posted on 06/27/2007 8:01:19 AM PDT by AngelesCrestHighway
For roughly a century, the United States has had the world's biggest economy. One of its strengths has been its infrastructure, from the rails and telegraph lines laid in the 19th century to the airports and fiber-optic networks of today. But as the United States struggles to stay ahead of China, is its aging infrastructure slowing it down? In almost every area - from waterworks to bridges and dams, highways to mass transit - many experts have answered "yes." A report card by the American Society of Civil Engineers, issued in 2005, gave the nation C's and D's in 14 of 15 categories, with an "incomplete" added for security. Some of these deficiencies have very real costs to economic growth. The poor condition of roads, the engineers estimated, costs $120 billion a year in repairs, operating costs and time wasted in traffic - that's equivalent to a full percentage point of the economy. "There's a tremendous need," said Larry Roth, a professional engineer who is deputy executive director of the engineers' group. "Not only are we not keeping pace with growth, but we're not keeping pace with the maintenance that's required. As a result, our infrastructure is simply crumbling." To eliminate its weaknesses, the United States would have to spend about $160 billion a year over five years, Roth added. That total of $800 billion is not so different from the $700 billion in estimated direct spending on the war in Iraq. Yet like investments in basic research and higher education, which may not pay off for decades, spending on infrastructure can be a tough sell for politicians. Their time horizon is usually the next election, not the next generation. And at the national level, infrastructure has hardly been an issue. "The American public is really aware of infrastructure," ...
(Excerpt) Read more at iht.com ...
Alaska, with next to no infrastructure to crumble, feels the pain.
The U.S. has had the world’s largest economy since 1860, according to figures I’ve seen.
I’ll give this a great big, “DUH!!!!!”
China builds a 120 MPH frieght railway to it’s interior, while we tear up track for “Walking Paths”...
We spend BILLIONS to rebuild a single interchange, instead of spending less than the yearly interest payment to help start up a rail service on existing track that would relieve the traffic that requires the rebuild in the first place.
We build HUGE, monsterous sky palaces while small city after small city drops off the air service network.
Infrastructure isn’t nearly as politicly sexy as a Senior Center, or a pretty and new Forest Service Welcome Center that they can’t afford to staff.
Our priorities have been screwed up for a LONG time now...
At least this is a serious assessment that has not been politicized in any way.
Not only is it roads and things as such, there are a lot of electrical utility companies & the government that are now realising the electrical grids in this country are in need of major upgrades, other countries around the world are hot markets for new electrical infrastructure.
Highways and bridges don’t vote.
Assistance program recipients do.
Three guesses who gets the money.
Well said....
Shedding some illegals could help lighten the load on the infrastructure...
Our politicians would rather provide us with bread and circuses..
No, but our aging drivers are.
Who is John Galt?
Problem solved. Next!
Yes.
The "It's all about me" society and stategic social planning are fatally and permanently incompatible.
One hundred percent of the large projects that created the greatest culture in the world, would not be possible today.
Next question...
That has been steadily declining, and recently at an accelerated pace, since about 1960, when "environmentalism" and the "great Society" became the national obsessions.
See post #16.
The press has been whining about “aging infrastructure” for 30 years. I was a reporter in the early 80’s and remember dozens of stories just like this one.
$51.8 million? Hell, you can’t put in a medium sized substation (distribution, not transmission) for that amount anymore.
Not altogether surprising that a group of engineers recommend infrastructure improvements. As my dad used to tell me, never ask a tire salesman if you need new tires.
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