Your vote, your crummy highways

CNN Money ^ | October 15, 2008 | Tami Luhby

[Lorianne]

The economy isn't the only thing falling apart in the United States.

Much of the nation's infrastructure - the highways, bridges, airports and transit lines that keep the American economy humming - is also crumbling and in dire need of improvement. Clearly, a top job for the next president will be finding the funds to fix these sprawling systems.

In fact, it would take $1.6 trillion over five years to address the nation's infrastructure problems, according to a 2005 report by the American Society of Civil Engineers, which gave the country's system a "D."

Both presidential candidates have acknowledged the importance of rebuilding the roads and rails, but have offered very different solutions. John McCain, the Republican nominee, advocates shifting financing from earmarks to high-priority projects, while Barack Obama, his Democratic challenger, would create a federally-funded bank to invest in improvement projects.

Experts, however, say what's really needed is money and a lot of it.

[Lorianne]

Article details the two candidates positions on infrastructure and energy. A little late in my view but at least they did it.

[Terry Mross]

No problem. Just sell them to foreign countries and let them charge tolls so they can raise money to repair them.

[Erik Latranyi]

If you are really serious about fixing our highways and bridges, you need to eliminate the “prevailing wage” laws in many states.

The prevailing wage laws ensure that all private contractors pay their employees the same wages paid to public, union highway workers.

The infrastructure could be fixed at 1/3 the cost if it were not for these laws that protect union thugs.

[DManA]

Eliminate just on department, say education, and you could rebuild all the bridges (and improve education 100% as a side benefit).

[AnotherUnixGeek]

Clearly, a top job for the next president will be finding the funds to fix these sprawling systems.

Here's an idea - stop diverting all of the current gasoline and road-use taxes to fund public transit projects and use them to maintain and improve roads, which is nominally what such taxes are for in the first place. We're already paying taxes for road maintenance - it's not our fault that the politicians would rather appease environmentalists than fix the roads.

[Brilliant]

The Dems oppose automobiles and gasoline. So why do we need highways?