The declining state of infrastructure in the United States is a problem that is rarely discussed by either politicians or voters, but is a problem nonetheless. Infrastructure is an issue that affects every citizen on many different levels. Everyday millions of Americans interact with infrastructure from their morning commutes, to the water that comes out of their tap, it is an important part of every modern society. As a large majority of infrastructure in the United States slowly becomes decrepit and unusable, citizens are at a serious disadvantage on a global level. The declining state of infrastructure affects the U.S. in two very serious ways. Both the safety of  citizens, and economic stability are being put in jeopardy and reaching points of disaster in America. The future of infrastructure in the United States will play a large part in the future success of America, and will greatly impact many future generations. 

The American Society for Civil Engineers (ASCE), is a very prominent organization in the field of infrastructure. Much of the testing and research conducted in this field is done through this organization. Every four years the ASCE releases a report card for our nation’s infrastructure. This report looks at all sections of infrastructure, including bridges, dams, levees, roadways, and other smaller categories. The report card issued for 2017 ranked the United States’ infrastructure a D+ on a scale of A to F. The ASCE defended their ranking by stating “The infrastructure is in poor to fair condition and mostly below standard, with many elements approaching the end of their service life. A large portion of the system exhibits significant deterioration. Condition and capacity are of serious concern with strong risk of failure.” (ASCE 2017 Report). The ASCE determined that for U.S. infrastructure to remain competitive, it needs some serious investment; in fact, nearly 2.2 trillion in the next ten years needs to be allocated to infrastructure. This investment is the only way to revamp and reshape infrastructure into a modern and high performing system.

One major risk associated with American infrastructure is the significant safety concerns endangering many United States citizens. The most serious of these risks concern bridges, dams, and levees. In 2009 FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency), released a report  detailing the dangers associated with the failing of the U.S. infrastructure. That year, nearly 1/3 of all dams in the united states were 50 years or older, and by 2019, that number will reach a staggering 70 percent (FEMA Report). In 2017 out of 90,580 the total number of dams, the number of dams currently listed as high hazard potential is at 15,500 dams, with 2,170 dams being listed as deficient high hazard potential (ASCE 2017 Report). The destruction associated with the failure of a high hazard potential dams has yet to be tested, the potential destruction they could amass has many experts concerned. One example of destruction caused by the failure of a dam are the floods of South Carolina in 2015. During this flooding, 25 dams failed, playing a major part in the 12 billion dollars worth of damage caused during this flood (Williams). These dams were considered low hazard potential, and still managed to do this large amount of damage. It is this very reason that there are concerns as to what the potential the failure of a high hazard potential dam could be. Updating our aging dams is a necessity to keep up with nature, “...many aging dams can no longer manage the waters they were built to control because of changes in river flows and weather patterns.” (Williams). The lack of updating and investment into dams could  lead to many potentially fatal and damaging disasters.

Another source of infrastructure that can cause safety hazards are levees. Levees are one of the lowest scoring sectors of infrastructure, receiving a mere D grade on the 2017 report card. Levees play a huge role in keeping Americans, and their property safe. The report states, “The nationwide network of levees consists of 30,000 documented miles and up to an estimated 100,000 miles of levees protects millions of people in cities large and small...” (ASCE Report). In America, roughly 2/3rds of all citizens live in a county with at least one levee or earthen embankment (ASCE 2017 Report). However, with the average age of these levees being 50 years, they are starting to show their age, especially those built during the late 20’s and early 30’s along the Mississippi river, and in the early 20th century in California (ASCE Report). The good news for levees is that only 5 percent of them are considered to be at a very high risk, and another 15 percent are considered to be at a moderate risk. Though not many of them are considered to be very high risk structures, the danger comes in the rapid aging of the levees. It is still important that they be well maintained and updated because a failure can be so incredibly detrimental to a region’s economy, and can result in billions of dollars worth of  property damage.

Bridges are third type of infrastructure that impose a risk on citizens. The rating given to bridges in the ASCE report was a C+. Our nation has taken significant steps to decrease the number of structurally deficient bridges in the last decade, lowering the percent of structurally deficient bridges from 12.3 percent to 9.1 percent. This may seem like a small percentage, but it has stopped over 188 million crossings over structurally deficient bridges each day in 2016. (ASCE 2017 report). On top of this, 39 percent of America’s bridges are older than 50 years old, with an additional 15 percent between the ages of 40 and 49. Many of these bridges lifespans were designed for a maximum of 50 years, and with each passing year these bridges become  more and more likely to be considered structurally deficient. Structurally deficient bridges are a large safety hazard for many reasons. The most apparent danger of a structurally deficient bridge comes in the form of  collapse. The largest case of a collapsing structurally deficient bridge in the U.S. comes from the I-35 bridge in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 2007. This collapse resulted in 13 fatalities and 145 other injuries(FEMA Report). On top of this danger, structurally deficient and functionally obsolete bridges present a danger because of a slowdown in traffic patterns. This makes the risk of collapse even more dangerous, because of and when a disaster arises, congestion slows down the response of emergency vehicles(FEMA Report). In America, roughly 1 in 8 bridges are considered functionally obsolete, leading to these choke points (2017 ASCE Report). If a bridge is both structurally deficient and functionally obsolete, then the bridge is categorized as just structurally deficient, meaning the number of functionally obsolete bridges is actually much larger. A second prime example of our failing bridge system is the Liberty Bridge in the city of Pittsburgh. According to former ASCE president Andy Hermann, the bridge is incredibly outdated, “It was built in 1928 when cars and trucks were much lighter. It was designed to last 50 years -- that was 86 years ago. Every day in Pittsburgh five million people travel across bridges that either need to be replaced or undergo major repairs”(60 minutes). This is a prime example of the disarray our bridges are in, as well as the rest of our infrastructure.  

On top of safety concerns, another major issue is the economic impact of an outdated, and inefficient system of infrastructure.  One area in specific where we are seeing a limit in our system’s potential, is traffic congestion. Traffic congestion, especially in heavily urban areas, are costing large sums of money in not only the logistics and shipping sector, but the everyday consumer as well. “The overall cost of traffic congestion rose almost 400 percent between 1982 and 2003, and its annual cost on the economy stands at over 85 million in 2008.” (Geddes pg.4) On top of the waste of time and money that comes from congested and ill planned traffic systems, there are also enormous amounts of fossil fuels being burnt. “Almost 3 billion gallons of gasoline are wasted annually”(Geddes 3). Another factor of traffic congestion which affects costs is delay. “Congestion affects buses, freight trucks and cars. Across 470 urban areas, there was a total of 6.9 billion vehicle-hours of delay (compared to free flow speed) on roads due to congestion in 2014”(Failure to act). If trends keep increasing, there is a projected 20 percent increase by the year 2020, leading to more expensive goods and more wasting of gasoline. In addition to the economic aspect of the excess burning of fossil fuels, there is also the factor of the deterioration of the environment. (Geddes) This in and of itself is a massive economic, and moral issue. 

Another economic factor that needs to be considered is the potential investment that comes from updating the infrastructure system. Infrastructure investment can help boost the local and national economies as well as create an opportunity to increase or nations GDP (gross Domestic Product), and allow for the creation for potentially millions of jobs. According to one source called EPI, an economic think tank, if there is an increase of spending annually of $92 billion, America could net a potential of 147 billion dollars annually, as well as adding a net of 1.1 million jobs(EPI report). This however is the short-term investment goal, as the long term impact cannot be properly estimated. Another benefit of improving our national infrastructure would come from the ability to boost economic productivity growth. If the goal to invest an additional of 250 billion annually could be reached, it would have a significant impact on economic productivity growth, boosting the economy to grow at an additional .3 percent. According to EPI, “A productivity acceleration of 0.3 percent would have measurable impacts on the estimated Non-Accelerating Inflation Rate of Unemployment (NAIRU) and could allow macroeconomic policymakers to target significantly lower rates of unemployment.” An impact on unemployment and the overall economy would be a huge advantage for America a global scale. 

In order to achieve this level of success and economic benefits from infrastructure, it is necessary for major investment. Investment into infrastructure is a highly-debated topic in politics today. According to the ASCE, an investment of 2.0 trillion dollars over the next 10 years would help raise our infrastructure to an acceptable place(ASCE). One way investment could be created would come from an increase in government spending and public investment. President Trump has recently requested a 1 trillion dollar plan from congress to update and invest into our infrastructure. This plan would call for an increase in investment from both private and public assets, and would allow for major updates to our system. This plan so far has been very vague, but is a promising start. One idea for an increase in public investment comes from an increase in the gasoline tax. The ASCE believe that to ensure future stability in funding, the national gas tax needs to be raised from the current rate of 18.4 cents per gallon for gasoline, and 24.4 cents per gallon in diesel fuel up by 25 cents. Though this increase is large, it would help adjust for some inflation, as the gas tax has not been raised since 1993. This increase would also help to fill the funding deficit, and ensure reliable funding for the future (ASCE report 2017). Although raising the gas tax seems like an easy and reliable option, many oppose the idea. In 2007, a study done by the state of Texas comptroller found that the gas tax was by far the most regressive tax levied by the state by a large margin.  Many citizens find the gas tax unfair as it ranges widely throughout the nation ( 7.5 cents in Georgia to 38.65 cents per gallon in New York), and does not accurately do the job it was intended to do(Geddes). The gas tax was intended to directly correlate with road and highway use, but as cars are becoming more and more fuel efficient this is not accurately depicted by the gas tax. Replacement ideas such as an increase in tolls are also being floated around for ways to increase public funding. 

Another way our infrastructure could be funded would be through private investment.  Private investment has many benefits and would allow for a very efficient and quick form of investment through privatized industry. One large example of a private company constructing and running a piece of infrastructure is the Chicago Skyway. The Skyway was leased to private investor for 99 years, with an upfront cost of around 1.83 billion dollars for the firm Skyway Concessions Company. This investment allowed for the city of Chicago to reduce the debt caused by building the Skyway, create a relief budget, and fund other non-transportation programs. A second example comes from the Indiana Toll Road. This came with an upfront cost of $3.8 billion, and a 75 year lease. This project encountered many difficulties as citizens believed that the INDOT (Indiana Department of Transportation) was not getting reliable consulting sources. While many see this as a feasible and rewarding funding option, others find it concerning. Many citizens find problems with private institutes running and controlling critical pieces of infrastructure. Many of the main concerns about privatizing infrastructure come from the cost of tolls, and corporations not having the public’s best interest in mind.  

While there is a very large group of citizens that believe America’s infrastructure deserves investment, some believe that an investment is not necessary. One argument made to increase federal spending on infrastructure was made by economist and writer Tim Worstall from Forbes Magazine. Tim makes the point that this research was done completely by civil engineers, and  they will inevitably exaggerate the amount of work actually needed, as it creates jobs in their sector. Another point made is that infrastructure is not just a project we can complete in the short term to help boost the economy. Worstall personally believes that in a modernized economy,  projects like this take too long to create any kind of boost. “We have actually tried this. And it's almost certainly not true, in our modern economy, that we can time a burst of spending for when we would like to get that fiscal boost.” (Worstall pg.2). However, while timed investment may be difficult to create, an investment this large has the potential to create millions of jobs and help boost the economy with ease. Worstall’s final point is that government funded projects this large equate to high salary unionized employees working on these jobs. “It's entirely standard that projects funded in any manner by government must pay "prevailing wages." That code phrase actually means union wages, and they can be as much as 100% above free market wages (a recent NYT piece had the union plumbers on $55 an hour, the non-union on $25).” While yes government employees are expensive, employment creates the opportunity for an increase in spending, allowing for a boost in all other sectors in the economy. This, along with the fiscal benefits of having a modernized infrastructure system would greatly outweigh the costs of paying this large number of employees a fair salary. 

America’s declining infrastructure is a topic that every citizen needs to be aware of. A modern infrastructure would allow for a great increase in safety, avoiding things such as bridge collapse, dam failures, as well as an increase in levee protection, and, a great economic benefit. Updating America’s infrastructure would allow for a decrease in spending on unnecessary costs such as wasted fuel burned during heavy congestion, as well as a faster and more efficient shipping sector, and a more reliable system in general. In the end, a modernized infrastructure system would benefit every citizen.  From an increase in jobs, to cheaper products and goods, to faster deliveries. The future of America depends greatly on our infrastructure, and an investment now could carry America a long way.  
