![dallas Dallas, TX](https://www.infrastructureusa.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/dallas.jpg)
How can we put an end to this?
View this complete post...John Hennessy III,
P.E.
AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF STATE HIGHWAY AND TRANSPORTATION OFFICIALS
Almost a year ago, we as a nation were stunned and saddened by the tragic bridge collapse in Minneapolis that took 13 lives, injured 144 others, and disrupted the life of a great city.
In the intervening year we have watched with pride the way in which federal, state, and city transportation agencies, contractors, and construction teams have worked night and day to bring to life a new bridge, unsurpassed in technology and design.
Also in the past year we in the transportation industry have looked even more closely at the safety and sustainability of America’s 590,000 bridges for today and into the future.
This report was developed by the men and women of the state departments of transportation to share that inside look with you.
Kate Slevin is an activist and urban planner who joined the Tri-State Transportation Campaign in 2002 as the organization’s spokesperson, moving to the position of associate director in 2003 and executive director in 2007. Under Kate’s direction, TSTC has increased its operating budget by 30%, catalyzed transportation reform in Connecticut, developed new programs to empower local communities in Newark, and helped pass legislation in New York State that led to $2 billion in new funding for public transportation. She is the editor of the acclaimed Mobilizing the Region blog which tracks regional transportation news and opinion.
View this complete post...COALITION FOR A SUSTAINABLE SR 520
SR 520 is one of two east-west roadways across Lake Washington. Approximately 115,000 vehicles carrying 190,000 people travel the SR 520 Evergreen Point Bridge every day.
Washington is dangerously close to its constitutional debt limit. SR 520 is dangerously close to the end of its useful life. The state is advocating a construction plan that can’t legally be paid for.
View this complete post...Both proposals stem from a conclusion that the obstacles standing in the way of enacting a new multi-year federal surface transportation program are of a long-term nature and will not be overcome any time soon. These obstacles include the inability of Congress to come up with a meaningful way to pay for the program; the increasingly shaky and uncertain status of the Highway Trust Fund; the pressure for deficit reduction in the fiscal and budgetary actions of the next Congress, especially in the likely event of a Republican takeover; and a low priority given to the reauthorization by the Obama White House (see our NewsBrief of July 16, “New Political Realities May Sidetrack the Transportation Reauthorization”).
View this complete post...HNTB CORPORATION
Despite a growing awareness that America’s aging network of highways, bridges and tunnels is in failing health, huge roadblocks are preventing Congressional action on a new national transportation bill: the lack of adequate funding sources and consensus on a vision that helps plan, prioritize and pay for U.S. infrastructure. A new America THINKS survey from HNTB Corporation suggests the answer may lie in a modern version of a solution that financed this country’s roads and bridges prior to the advent of a national gas tax more than 50 years ago: tolling.
BLUEPRINT AMERICA
In recent years a little noticed shift has been transforming suburbia: the home of the middle class has become the home of the working poor. As a result, roadways that were built for the car are now used by a growing population that can’t afford to drive. The consequences can be deadly.
James Corless is the Director of Transportation for America, a coalition of over 400 organizations working to promote a new national transportation policy that’s smarter, safer, cleaner and provides more choice. Prior to Transportation for America, Mr. Corless was a senior planner for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission in the San Francisco Bay Area where he managed the agency’s efforts to promote smarter growth, transit-oriented development and mobility options for low-income communities. Mr. Corless was the author of California’s groundbreaking Safe Routes to School law and legislation that paved the way for smart growth “blueprints” to become part of the regional transportation planning process throughout the state.
View this complete post...TRI-STATE TRANSPORTATION CAMPAIGN
As long as states are responsible for building and maintaining our country’s surface transportation system, they remain the central actors in transportation decision making and are the lynchpin for any lasting reform. The ability to influence policies, projects and spending decisions at the state level matters.
View this complete post...The House Subcommittee on Highways and Transit met on Wednesday to discuss bridge inspection in the U.S. (a responsibility of the Federal Highway Administration). According to James Oberstar, Chairman of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman , “With over one-half of our bridges built before 1964, it is increasingly important that we have […]
View this complete post...Follow InfrastructureUSA
Video, stills and tales. Share images of the Infra in your community that demands attention. Post your ideas about national Infra issues. Go ahead. Show Us Your Infra! Upload and instantly share your message.
Is the administration moving fast enough on Infra issues? Are Americans prepared to pay more taxes for repairs? Should job creation be the guiding determination? Vote now!
What do the experts think? This is where the nation's public policy organizations, trade associations and think tanks weigh in with analysis on Infra issues. Tell them what you think. Ask questions. Share a different view.
The Infra Blog offers cutting edge perspective on a broad spectrum of Infra topics. Frequent updates and provocative posts highlight hot button topics -- essential ingredients of a national Infra dialogue.
It is encouraging to finally see clear signs of federal action to support a comprehensive US infrastructure investment plan.
Now more than ever, our advocacy is needed to keep stakeholders informed and connected, and to hold politicians to their promises to finally fix our nation’s ailing infrastructure.
We have already engaged nearly 280,000 users, and hoping to add many more as interest continues to grow.
We require your support in order to rise to this occasion, to make the most of this opportunity. Please consider making a tax-deductible donation to InfrastructureUSA.org.
Steve Anderson
Managing Director
SteveAnderson@InfrastructureUSA.org
917-940-7125