‘Needed attention’ On Infrastructure

A good start, but $1.5 trillion is not enough to bring our infrastructure up to good condition and to modernize. The American Society of Civil Engineers 2017 Annual Report indicates that $4.6 trillion is needed, and this is probably on the low side, since it does not include things like high-speed trains. Too much of the money spent by the Obama administration went for short-term repair and upgrade of existing infrastructure such as roads, rail lines, and bridges rather than higher economic multiplier new projects. (Probably, for political gain since most these work is done by people who are in unions and therefore pro-Democratic Party). While we need to bring existing infrastructure up to standards, new projects are also needed to create more of a multiplier effect on the economy and for long-term sustainment of jobs. New projects like high-speed trains (MAG-LEV, Hyperloop, etc.) are needed to reduce congestion on our highways and airports and to bring us in line with Europe and Asia which already have high-speed train systems.

5G Technology is much more hazardous than that which the FCC and telcoms are claiming concerning WiFi radiation. Image a pole every 500′ with a cabinet the size of an under the counter fridge transmitting and receiving 24/7. The radiation 24/7 will be debilitating to anyone with electrosensitivity including surrounding cell lifeforms.
Please find 3rd party evidence before spending a nickel.
Lloyds of London refuses to insure smart meters, cell towers and anything radiation related, why? Smart meters are not certified by UL Underwriters Laboratories, WHY?
The above is all tied to the Infrastructure Act proposed, please place a stay of execution until these health hazards are addressed.
How is 5G and the US Constitution reconciled?
Thank you for all you are doing! MAGA

This is the most corrupt and immoral president in our American history. He lies all the time and is a traitor to our country. Anyone who supports him is corrupt too. May God help us all!

Not to mention all of the statues an monuments honoring war hero’s, throughout the South that have be vandalized or fallen into disrepair!

There are 16 areas measured across the US by the ASCE and of those 16 the grades average out to be a D. The star or best performers are Ports with a C grade and railroads with a B. Any idea why the rest are tanking?
Railroads are private and a good portions of port work is as well. There is a small portion of railroads government run or operated which may account for the grade only being a B.
Look to government operations local and Federal and be inspired by the efficiency of your local DMV’s and Federal postal systems. For the large part if not most of the other 14 measures are government operated which might make you wonder why private companies with limited resources show up so much better than other areas with unlimited funding and resources..read this as taxpayers funding a governmental agency with little to no actual accountability.
So if you hear someone pontificating other countries infrastructures and better programs outside of the USA, it’s a good time to realize it is on the back of the taxpayers as always but not efficient at all but likely the fix you will hear is..”we need more of your money to spend as we see fit but do not worry about oversight.

Obama got $1.5 Trillion Dollars in QE money. Said he was going to “rebuild” Americas Infrastructure. Where did the money go? I know where it went. It went to grease up all his Buddies. It sure as hell did not go to build roads. Stinking democrat crook.

Republicans in Congress will find themselves in the minority if they do not stop fighting among themselves. Why are they opposed to steel tariffs. China is on its way to becoming the dominant super power. We need to be producing our own steel and aluminum so that it is available to build equipment that we may (probably will) need for armaments. The Democrat fantasy that the world can be at peace if we just love each other leaves out the most important factor…human nature. There will always be power hungry humans (unless we revert to “Brave New World” by Aldous Huxley and start making everyone in test tubes). There are many reasons that “America First” is critical.

We need Federal spending on infrastructure improvements, but they should be restricted to projects that are NATIONAL in scope and purpose. Projects that are for the benefit almost exclusively of states and local governments should be funded by those entities, or not at all. If they have a high enough priority for local funding, they can be funded that way. We don’t need the Federal government spending money that it doesn’t have on projects that should not be its responsibility. Such projects are just another excuse for the Federal government to spend more money. We need less Federal government spending, not more.

To Mareypolo: I can tell you where the infrastructure shovel ready jobs money went in my state. Our Governor used it to balance her budget. To add insult to injury she did spend some of it by putting orange barrels on many of our state highways that just sat there for months. I guess she thought we would be fooled into thinking she was actually going to use the money for road repairs.

AMERICA’S INFRASTRUCTURE GRADES FOR 2013

ENERGY D+
SCHOOLS OUR NATION’S INFASTRUCTURE

Infrastructure refers to the fundamental facilities and systems serving a country, city, or area,[1] including the services and facilities necessary for its economy to function.[2] It typically characterises technical structures such as roads, bridges, tunnels, water supply, sewers, electrical grids, telecommunications, and so forth, and can be defined as “the physical components of interrelated systems providing commodities and services essential to enable, sustain, or enhance societal living conditions.”[3] Wikipedia

Highways, Freeways, Bridges and Overpasses, Airports, Heliports, Runways and Tarmacs.

Our present facilities are deteriorating faster than our political subdivisions can repair them, We must replace some and maintain all of those facilities.

253 million cars and trucks on U.S. roads; average age is 11.4 years. The average age of cars on U.S. roads is 11.4 years, IHS Automotive reports.

AMERICA’S INFRASTRUCTURE
Every family, every community and every business needs infrastructure to thrive. Infrastructure encompasses your local water main and the Hoover Dam; the power lines connected to your house and the electrical grid spanning the U.S.; and the street in front of your home and the national highway system.
Once every four years, America’s civil engineers provide a comprehensive assessment of the nation’s major infrastructure categories in ASCE’s Report Card for America’s Infrastructure (Report Card).

Using a simple A to F school report card format, the Report Card provides a comprehensive assessment of current infrastructure conditions and needs, both assigning grades and making recommendations for how to raise the grades. An Advisory Council of ASCE members assigns the grades according to the following eight criteria: capacity, condition, funding, future need, operation and maintenance, public safety, resilience, and innovation. Since 1998, the grades have been near failing, averaging only Ds, due to delayed maintenance and under investment across most categories.

Now the 2013 Report Card grades are in, and America’s cumulative GPA for infrastructure rose slightly to a D+. The grades in 2013 ranged from a high of B- for solid waste to a low of D- for inland waterways and levees. Solid waste, drinking water, wastewater, roads, and bridges all saw incremental improvements, and rail jumped from a C- to a C+. No categories saw a decline in grade this year.

The 2013 Report Card demonstrates that we can improve the current condition of our nation’s infrastructure — when investments are made and projects move forward, the grades rise. For example, greater private investment for efficiency and connectivity brought improvements in the rail category; renewed efforts in cities and states helped address some of the nation’s most vulnerable bridges; and, several categories benefited from short-term boosts in federal funding.

We know that investing in infrastructure is essential to support healthy, vibrant communities. Infrastructure is also critical for long-term economic growth, increasing GDP, employment, household income, and exports. The reverse is also true – without prioritizing our nation’s infrastructure needs, deteriorating conditions can become a drag on the economy.

While the modest progress is encouraging, it is clear that we have a significant backlog of overdue maintenance across our infrastructure systems, a pressing need for modernization, and an immense opportunity to create reliable, long-term funding sources to avoid wiping out our recent gains. Overall, most grades fell below a C, and our cumulative GPA inched up just slightly to a D+ from a D four years ago.
We invite you to take a deeper look at the nation’s infrastructure conditions in the 2013 Report Card – from the state infrastructure facts, to the interactive charts, to our three key solutions.

G . P . A . D+ESTIMATED INVESTMENT NEEDED BY 2020:$3.6 TRILLION
D
PUBLIC PARKS & RECREATION C-
TRANSIT D
ROADS D
RAIL C+
PORTS C
INLAND WATERWAYS D-
BRIDGES C+
AVIATION D
WASTEWATER D
SOLID WASTE B-
LEVEES D-
HAZARDOUS WASTE D
DRINKING WATER D
DAMS D

A: EXCEPTIONAL, B: GOOD, C: MEDIOCRE, D: POOR, F: FAILING
Each category was evaluated on the basis of capacity, condition, funding, future need, operation and maintenance, public safety, resilience, and innovation

EXPLORE ALL THE NATIONAL INFRASTRUCTURE GRADES >
Infrastructure is the foundation that connects the nation’s businesses, communities, and people, driving our economy and improving our quality of life.
For the U.S. economy to be the most competitive in the world, we need a first class infrastructure system – transport systems that move people and goods efficiently and at reasonable cost by land, water, and air; transmission systems that deliver reliable, low-cost power from a wide range of energy sources; and water systems that drive industrial processes as well as the daily functions in our homes. Yet today, our infrastructure systems are failing to keep pace with the current and expanding needs, and investment in infrastructure is faltering.
We must commit today to make our vision of the future a reality – an American infrastructure system that is the source of our prosperity.

WE NEED MORE OR EXPANDED HIGHWAYS AND FREEWAYS
To accommodate the increase in auto and truck traffic each year

We live 8 miles SW of Nyssa, Oregon on a County Road named Grand Ave.. When we go to Boise, Idaho which is about 60 miles distance, we travel like this: We go on Grand Ave.(County Road) 4 miles East to Highway 201 (State Highway) 4 miles NE to Nyssa, OR and hit US 20-26 (Fed Highway) then 2 miles E and hit US 95 (Fed Highway) then 30 miles SE to I 84 by Caldwell (Fed Highway) then continue on I 84 20 miles to Boise.

There is lots of traffic locally on these roads and many accidents occur because of over anxious drivers that need to get somewhere. I think Fed Highway 20-26 should be 4 lane with at least on grade crossings from Vale, OR to Anderson Corner (2mi E of Nyssa) and connect with US 95. US 95 should be 4 lane with on grade crossings from Weiser, ID to Payette to Fruitland then to Parma, ID merging with US 20-26 at Anderson Corner then to Parma to where it goes south to Jordan Valley and Nevada. Then US 20-26 a 4 lane on to I 84 at Caldwell. These are all two lane roads now and it is insane that the need to make them 4 lane has not been in the vision of the planners.

I suspect that these are not isolated cases as this same situation probably exists all over the United States.