By HOPE YEN
Associated Press

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — America’s infrastructure has scored near-failing grades for its deteriorating roads, public transit and storm water systems due to years of inaction from the federal government, the American Society of Civil Engineers reports. Its overall grade: a mediocre C-.

In its “Infrastructure Report Card” released Wednesday, the group called for “big and bold” relief, estimating it would cost $5.9 trillion over the next decade to bring roads, bridges and airports to a safe and sustainable level. That’s about $2.6 trillion more than what government and the private sector already spend.

“America’s infrastructure is not functioning as it should, and families are losing thousands of dollars a year in disposable income as a result of cities having to fix potholes, people getting stuck in traffic or due to repairs when a water line breaks or the energy grid goes down,” said Greg DiLoreto, one of the group’s past presidents.

“It’s critical we take action now,” he said, expressing optimism that the federal government is now making it a “top priority.”

During Donald Trump’s four years in the White House, his administration often held “Infrastructure Week” events and touted transportation improvements. But it was not able to push Congress to pass any broad plan to update the nation’s roads and bridges, rails and airports.

The overall C- grade on America’s infrastructure — reflecting a “mediocre” condition with “significant deficiencies” — is a slight improvement from its D+ grade in 2017. The group cited in part state and local government and private-sector efforts, which have turned to new technology to pinpoint water main leaks and prioritize fixes.

But of the 17 categories making up the overall grade, 11 were in the D range that indicated a “significant deterioration” with a “strong risk of failure.” They included public transit, storm water infrastructure, airports and roads and highways, which make up the biggest chunk of U.S. infrastructure spending at $1.6 trillion, according to the group.

Four areas got Cs: bridges, which dropped from a C+ to a C in 2021, energy, drinking water and solid waste. Just two areas — ports and rail — scored higher, with a B- and B, respectively.

President Joe Biden’s administration and lawmakers in recent weeks  have begun laying the groundwork  for a long-sought boost to the nation’s roads, bridges and other infrastructure of $2 trillion or more, to be unveiled after Congress approves legislation on COVID-19 relief. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who has been meeting with lawmakers about the effort, has said the aim would be to rejuvenate the post-coronavirus pandemic economy and boost crumbling roads and bridges while encouraging alternative forms of transportation to cars, as well as create thousands of green jobs by making environmentally friendly retrofits and public works improvements.

“This report card is a warning and a call to action,” Buttigieg told The Associated Press. “A generation of disinvestment is catching up to us, and we must choose whether to allow our global competitors to pull ahead permanently, or to invest in the safety, equity, resilience and economic strength that superior infrastructure can bring to Americans.”

Buttigieg announced on Tuesday the first low-cost federal transportation loan in the Biden administration, up to $448 million to Texas for toll-road projects in Austin to ease congestion, touting bike-friendly features such as a planned 10-foot-wide paved sidewalk for cyclists and pedestrians with access to trails.

“As communities across the country continue to battle the pandemic, we are committed to being a partner to help them save money, reduce congestion and improve mobility, safety, and accessibility,” said Buttigieg, a former mayor of South Bend, Indiana, who will address the engineers group later Wednesday.

In its report card, the group said years of inaction has had consequences. It cited growing costs being passed along to consumers as cities and states grapple with funding shortages to fix roads and bridges and delay other major upgrades to infrastructure.

The nation’s weak infrastructure has been a problem for communities, including Texas’ recent struggles  with power outages and water shortages after a brutal winter storm. Unusually frigid conditions led to frozen pipes that burst and flooded homes, and millions of residents lost heat and running water.

According to the report card, the nation is only paying about half of what it needs to lift overall U.S. infrastructure to an acceptable “B” level. Left unaddressed, America’s overdue infrastructure bill by 2039 will cost the average American household $3,300 a year, or $63 a week, the group said.

It urged strong leadership, greater investment and “new approaches,” such as taking into account the reality of climate change in longer-term capital improvement plans.

“Big and bold action from Washington, as well as continued prioritization by states and localities, is needed to bring all our infrastructure to a state of good repair,” the report card said.

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By Nate Beck
91��Ƶ Newswire

A report released Tuesday from the American Society of Civil Engineers estimates that America’s inadequate infrastructure could cause a $23 trillion decline in business productivity over the next two decades if it’s not addressed.

ASCE finds that a continued lack of investment in infrastructure would lead to a series of costs for U.S. households and a variety of industries. The trade group estimates that 11 infrastructure areas — including highways, bridges, water infrastructure and others — would need a nearly $13 trillion investment between now and 2039. Planned investments in those infrastructure sources currently total $7.3 trillion, leaving a $5.6 trillion gap over the next 20 years.

“America’s infrastructure bill is overdue, and we have been ignoring it for years,” said Tom Smith, ASCE executive director. “There’s no better way to jumpstart the economy while also lessening the financial burden on businesses and families, than by making a down payment on our infrastructure now — transit systems, bridges, water treatment plants and the grid — to ensure these systems are sustainable, resilient and safe for communities across the nation.”

ASCE’s report finds that America’s infrastructure spending gap has grown since the trade group’s last such report in 2016. The investment gap for surface transportation investment increased since 2016 from $1.1 trillion over 10 years to $1.2 trillion over 10 years.

The trade group calls for spending an additional $281 billion a year on infrastructure to close the gap and head off economic damage of continued disinvestment.

“Once again, the American Society of Civil Engineers has demonstrated, in stark detail, the high price Americans pay for failing infrastructure,” said Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Oregon, in a statement. “The cost of inaction is too great for Congress to sit idly. I look forward to working with ASCE, President-elect Biden and Secretary Buttigieg to finally get the job done and rebuild and renew America.”

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The American Society of Civil Engineers has announced that Martin Fertal will join the group as chief operating officer, effective Jan. 4.

In this position, Fertal will be responsible for coordinating the annual operations plan and budget and provide day-to-day leadership.

A civil engineer and management executive with more than 30 years of organizational and operational leadership experience, Fertal brings expertise in strategic planning, business development, business process improvement, IT program management and staff development.

Fertal comes to ASCE from the Logistics Management Institute where, as principal for Program and Implementation management, he was responsible for key LMI strategic initiatives, including reshaping corporate program review structures, achieving improved operational performance and implementing successful management strategies for LMI’s programs and business pursuits. Prior to LMI, he held senior positions with Engility Corp., TASC, Northrop Grumman, TRW and BDM International.

In his ASCE role, Fertal will oversee several areas of internal operations that include Membership, Marketing and Sales, Continuing Education, Publications and Communications, as well as oversight of the operational areas of Finance, Customer Service and Human Resources.

Fertal earned both a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree in civil engineering from Carnegie Mellon University and is a licensed professional engineer in Virginia. Fertal is married, has two sons, and along with his family enjoys spending time outdoors, hiking, biking and traveling. In his spare time, he volunteers for the National Park Service.

ASCE also announced that it has launched an all-new, digital news and information site, the Civil Engineering Source. This one-stop shop provides ASCE members and the public access to industry news, career and management articles, ASCE news, job posts and practitioner-focused technical updates. The site also features a completely redesigned, mobile-friendly Civil Engineering magazine digital edition, with expanded online-only content published continually. With the launch of the Civil Engineering Source website, ASCE has retired the current ASCE News weekly e-newsletter, and implemented a companion daily e-newsletter — open to ASCE members and non-members — that uses an AI-driven publishing platform to deliver a personalized, “smarter” news digest to subscribers each day.

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