Recently in Infrastructure Category

Source: Travis Madsen, Benjamin Davis, Phineas Baxandall, U.S. PIRG Education Fund, April 2010

From the summary:
Over the last 50 years, America has built roads and bridges at a pace and scale that dwarfs most of the rest of the world. We've built a national highway network like no other, with more than 45,000 miles of interstate highway and 575,000 highway bridges.

Now, much of that system is showing its age - and as maintenance needs continue to grow, we are falling farther behind.

Across the nation, drivers face more than 90,000 miles of crumbling highways and more than 70,000 structurally deficient bridges. Neglected maintenance of roads and bridges acts as a constant drain on our economy and a scourge on our quality of life. Rough and rutted roads cause accidents, damage vehicles, trigger traffic jams that lead to countless hours of delay, and waste money Americans need for other expenses. On some occasions - such as the 2007 collapse of the I-35 bridge connecting Minneapolis - it can lead to profound tragedy.

Why are America's roads and bridges in such terrible shape? And who or what is to blame?

The deterioration of our roads and bridges is no accident. Rather, it is the direct result of countless policy decisions that put other considerations ahead of the pressing need to preserve our investment in the highway system.

Source: Jonathan D. Miller, Urban Land Institute, 2010

From the summary:
Infrastructure 2010 challenges the United States to treat infrastructure like the investment that it is, by developing a targeted, long-term, and integrated infrastructure strategy. The report puts the spotlight on water infrastructure, examining aging pipes, population pressures, and management challenges across 14 metropolitan areas.

Source: Daniel Mandel, New America Policy Papers, February 23, 2010

As the Senate takes up a greatly scaled down $15 billion jobs bill stripped of all infrastructure spending, the nation should consider the compelling case for public infrastructure investment offered by Governors Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-CA) and Ed Rendell (D-PA). Appearing on ABC's "This Week" on Sunday, the bipartisan Co-Chairs of Building America's Future explained why rebuilding America's infrastructure is the key to both job creation in the short and medium term and our prosperity in the longer term.

Rather than go from one negligible jobs bill to the next, the administration and Congress should, as the governors suggest, map out a multi-year plan of infrastructure investment and make it the centerpiece of an ongoing economic recovery program.

Source: Guest Editor: Jim Young, New Solutions, Vol.19 no. 2, 2009
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New Solutions has been published as a special issue, Green Jobs, Green Recovery.
Articles include:
• New Solutions and the Blue Green Alliance--Good Jobs, Green Jobs Conference - Craig Slatin, Editor, Beth Rosenberg, Editor, Eduardo Siqueira
• Global Warming Solutions and the Path to Recovery - David Foster
• Climate Policy Statement - The Blue Green Alliance
• A Chance to Create Jobs that Do Good - Lisa Jackson
• Growing a Strong Middle Class - Martin O'Malley
• A Case for Green Energy Manufacturing - Sherrod Brown
• Change is Happening - Amy Klobuchar
• Embracing a Clean-Energy Future - Kathleen Sebelius
• Rebuild America Clean and Green - Leo W. Gerard
• Start Your Engines - Carl Pope
• Renew, Refuel, and Rebuild - Allison Chin
• Green Jobs to Meet America's Biggest Challenges - Peter Lehner
• Ensuring that Green Jobs are Good Jobs - Sharon Beard
• Changing Course--And the World - Terence M. O'Sullivan
• Jobs and The Environment - Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
• Massive Public Investment Needed to Grow Green Economy - Communications Workers of America
• Together We'll Take America Back - Van Jones
• Global Green New Deal - Achim Steiner
• A Strategic Approach to a Green Economy - Richard L. Trumka
• Blue and Green Working Together - James P. Hoffa
• Green Jobs and a Strong Middle Class - John D. Podesta
• We Want a Made-in-the-U.S.A. Economy - Phil Angelides
• Repowering America - Alliance for Climate Protection
• Wind Energy Can Power a Strong Recovery - Denise Bode

Source: National Governors Association, Center for Best Practices, September 29, 2009

As governors across the country look at ways they can help build a green economy in their state, the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) has commissioned Collaborative Economics Inc. (CEI) to prepare a profile of each state's "green" economy. State profiles can be found by clicking on the map above. This data is designed to provide a detailed, empirical account of each state's existing assets across multiple green sectors and serve as a foundation for identifying future growth areas and related needs. The profile is based on a methodology presented by CEI at the NGA Center's Green Economy State Roundtable in April.

Source: Brookings Institution, Energy Security Initiative and Metropolitan Policy Program, September 2009

President Barack Obama has made it clear that transforming the U.S. economy from a fossil fuels-driven to a "green" economy based on domestic, renewable energy sources is a top priority for his administration. The electricity grid is an essential part of this modernization process. The "smart grid" has received considerable attention as well as substantial financing in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. However, electricity transmission and distribution systems remain highly fragmented and regionalized, supported by various owners, regulators, and operators. Major challenges exist around creating the appropriate governance mechanisms to develop our electricity infrastructure.

Source: Ted R. Miller, Eduard Zaloshnja, Transportation Construction Coalition, May 2009

While considerable research has been conducted over the past 50 years quantifying the significant roles motor vehicle design, drunk and drugged driving, speeding and non-use of seatbelts play as factors in the number, severity and economic costs of motor vehicle crashes in the United States, this is the first national study in many years to examine the role and consequences of another major factor in these tragic incidences--the physical condition of U.S. roadways.

The study finds that the cost and severity of crashes where roadway conditions are a factor "greatly exceeds the cost and severity of crashes where alcohol or speeding was involved, or the cost of non-use of seatbelts."

Source Public Works, 2009

Almost 20% of the $787 billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will be spent on improving the nation's infrastructure.The editors of Public Works have assembled a sector-by-sector guide to how much is available and under what conditions. The site includes: News & updates, Fleet services, Public grounds and facilities, Solid waste, Streets, roads, and bridges, Technology and equipment, Water, wastewater, and stormwater, and Other resources.

Source: Lynn Scarlett, Better, Faster, Cheaper, Ash Institute for Democratic Governance and Innovation, Harvard Kennedy School, July 30, 2009

Cities can avoid the need for costly stormwater infrastructure by giving developers the right incentives.

First, the bad news: Nationwide, urban development with impervious surfaces has increased 20 percent over the past two decades. The resulting increase in stormwater runoff is costing cities an estimated $100 billion annually to manage and contain this additional runoff. Proper management of stormwater runoff is important both to prevent flooding and to limit pollutants from entering lakes, rivers, and streams--but it can be very costly.

Now, the good news: New approaches to stormwater management are encouraging greener development, meaning local governments can avoid runoff problems without investing in costly infrastructure.

Source: Jennifer Grzeskowiak, American City and County, May 2009

With little help from the stimulus package, water officials continue searching for long-term funding.