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Transportation for America announces new advisory board

Transportation for America announces a new 20-person advisory board representing ambitious communities and organizations from across the country.

For immediate release

WASHINGTON DC — Today, Transportation for America announces the creation of a new advisory board to guide the organization’s strategic direction, bringing powerful local voices to T4America’s work ensuring that states and the federal government step up to invest in smart, locally driven transportation solutions.

The diverse 20-person advisory board represents regions all over the country and a wide range of experience; including mayors, city councilmembers, chambers of commerce officials, the healthcare industry, metropolitan planning officials, and non-profit advocates.

“Our local economies depend on sustained investment in maintaining and improving our roads, bridges and transit networks, so people can get to work and goods can get to market,” said board member Dave Williams, vice president of infrastructure and government affairs with the Metro Atlanta Chamber. “I’m pleased to join with local leaders and Transportation for America in providing a critical voice for local communities at the national level and invaluable on-the-ground assistance to cities, towns and suburbs across the country.”

“We are deeply honored to have these ambitious leaders from all over the country at the table with us,” said Mayor John Robert Smith, co-chair of Transportation for America and chairman of the new advisory board. “They represent the best of what’s happening in places all over the country to ensure that cities, towns and counties are rich with opportunity.”

The full advisory board, also viewable at https://t4america.org/about/advisory-board

  • The Hon. John Robert Smith, former Mayor, Meridian MS (Chairman)
  • The Hon. Ben McAdams, Mayor, Salt Lake County
(UT)
  • The Hon. Greg Ballard, Mayor, Indianapolis, IN
  • The Hon. William Bell, Mayor, Durham, NC
  • The Hon. Elaine Clegg, Councilmember, Boise, ID
  • The Hon. Chris Koos, Mayor, Normal, IL
  • The Hon. Marc Morial, President & CEO, National Urban League, former Mayor, New Orleans, LA
  • The Hon. Mayor Ken Barr, former Mayor, Fort Worth, TX
  • Maud Daudon, President & CEO, Seattle Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce (WA)
  • Ralph Schulz, President and CEO, Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce
(TN)
  • Mary Leslie, President, Los Angeles Business Council
  • Dave Williams, Vice President – Infrastructure and Government Affairs, Metro Atlanta Chamber (GA)
  • Richard A. Dimino, President & CEO, A Better City (Boston, MA)
  • Arturo Vargas, Executive Director, National Association of Latino Elected Officials (NALEO)
  • Leslie Wollack, Program Director, Federal Relations, National League of Cities
  • Denny Zane, Executive Director, Move LA (Los Angeles, CA)
  • Renata Soto, Executive Director, Conexión Américas (Nashville, TN)
  • Peter Skosey, Executive Vice President, Metropolitan
Planning Council (Chicago, IL)
  • Mike McKeever, CEO, Sacramento Area Council of Governments
(CA)
  • Tyler Norris, Vice President, Total Health Partnerships, Kaiser Permanente

Contact: David Goldberg
Communications Director
202-412-7930
david.goldberg@t4america.org

T4America applauds President and House tax chair for efforts to fix the transportation funding crisis, as local leaders plead for help

Today President Obama and House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Dave Camp (R-MI) introduced separate proposals that would prevent the looming insolvency of the nation’s key infrastructure trust fund.

President Obama today unveiled a proposal for a four-year, $302 billion transportation bill, with a windfall from business tax reform covering the shortfall in the Highway Trust Fund for that period. Chairman Camp proposed tax reform measures that would include staving off insolvency of the transportation fund for eight years. James Corless, director of Transportation for America, issued this statement in response:

“We are encouraged to see the threat to our nation’s transportation network begin to get the attention it deserves. With the bankruptcy of our transportation trust fund just months away, this can’t come soon enough. Just today, local leaders from across the country came to Capitol Hill to tell Congress what a robust federal investment in their transportation networks would mean for their economic development and long term prosperity. (See our blog post on today’s events here.)

These local leaders are putting their money where their mouth is, going to their voters for tax increases to pay for infrastructure they need. But as they said today, and as I reiterated in remarks to members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, their plans count on a dependable federal partner. Today’s actions by the Administration and key House leaders show the message may finally be getting through.

With the current transportation program expiring at the end of September, we look forward to working with Congress and the Administration on a fully funded program that promotes innovation, rewards initiative and gives local communities the latitude to solve their infrastructure challenges.”

U.S. DOT Acting Assistant Secretary Beth Osborne joins Transportation for America

Transportation for America is pleased to announce the hiring of Beth Osborne, a key leader in federal policy at the U.S. Department of Transportation, where she served in the office of the Secretary since 2009 as Deputy Assistant Secretary and then Acting Assistant Secretary for Transportation Policy.

In her new position, Ms. Osborne will serve as President of Transportation for America’s newly-created mission-driven consulting service, directing the organization’s on-the-ground work with the local communities seeking to invest in the infrastructure required for their — and the country’s — continued economic prosperity.

As a veteran of administering the competitive TIGER grant program at U.S. DOT, there are few who understand not only the difficulty in obtaining funding for innovative transportation projects, but also just how crucial these projects are to local communities. Ms. Osborne will oversee a new Transportation for America service dedicated to providing capacity, support and resources to the local communities and local leaders across the country that know smarter approaches to infrastructure and development are keys to their economic success.

She will also lead the newly created Center for Innovative Funding and Finance at Transportation for America, a go-to resource for leaders in both the public and private sector who are looking for insight on creative funding sources and financing for infrastructure that serves economic development and neighborhood revitalization.

“We couldn’t be more thrilled to welcome an expert like Beth to our team,” said James Corless, director of Transportation for America. “Few people in the country know as much as she does about how communities can get critical, innovative projects done in the complexities of today’s funding and policy environment, and we’re proud to bring her to Transportation for America.”

At the U.S. DOT, Ms. Osborne has played a key role in helping to steer federal policy toward creating more opportunities and greater latitude for local communities to improve their transportation networks in service to their economic development goals. She has been especially instrumental in implementing the popular TIGER program begun by Congress in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, helping to set evaluation criteria and select recipients of the competitive grants.

As a former Congressional staff lead on transportation, she also knows the ins and outs of the legislative process for the federal program; essential experience as the House and Senate prepare to take up reauthorization of MAP-21 later this year.

”I am so excited to join the team at Transportation for America,” said Ms. Osborne. “I’m eager to be a part of helping motivated local communities turn their ambitious transportation plans and visions into reality. It’s not easy to make projects happen in this climate today and I look forward to being a part of their success.”

Statement in response to President Obama’s call for transportation investment in the State of the Union address

Responding to President Obama’s call to steer new revenue toward “rebuilding our roads, upgrading our ports, unclogging our commutes”, Transportation for America Director James Corless issued this statement:

“President Obama is doing the nation a great service by bringing attention to the urgent need to provide our communities with the resources to build and repair the infrastructure our prosperity depends on. As he said, ‘In today’s global economy, first-class jobs gravitate to first-class infrastructure.’

 

As the President will note in trips to Nashville, Pittsburgh and other communities this week, can-do communities are leading the way with innovative, cost-effective investment strategies, with projects designed to sustain economic growth while improving quality of life. It is critical that they succeed: These centers of commerce are the building blocks of our nation’s economy, and if they grind to a halt, so will the country as a whole. But they can’t solve these issues of national urgency alone.

 

In calling for greater investment in transportation the President joins the chairs of two key infrastructure committees, Rep. Bill Shuster (R-PA) and Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), who have shown great leadership in working across the aisle to raise awareness of the need to save our federal transportation fund from insolvency and make crucial investments for America’s future. They, in turn, are echoing what we are hearing from local elected, business and civic leaders around the country, who are all but begging for a robust federal partner to help them get workers to jobs and goods to market.

 

The President, the committee chairs, and local leaders are right: We absolutely must put more money into fixing and modernizing our infrastructure, or watch it crumble along with our economic prosperity. And just as importantly, we have to get those resources into the hands of the local communities that will drive our economic success.”

Business, civic and elected leaders from across the country call on Congress to boost and refocus transportation funding

D.C. event launches new alliance to press for an investment program equal to our economic opportunities and challenges 

CONTACT: David Goldberg, 202-412-793, david.goldberg@t4america.org

Washington, D.C. – Kicking off a new push to rejuvenate the nation’s investment in transportation, business and civic leaders from cities, towns and suburbs across the country came together Tuesday to urge Congress to help them innovate and build the infrastructure needed for today’s economy.

At the same time, event host Transportation for America released a proposal to raise an additional $30 billion a year for transportation, to plug the funding hole in the 2012 MAP-21 program while funding competitive grants to support innovative projects with strong economic impact. T4America announced the launch of a new campaign around the proposal.

“Under deadline to renew the federal transportation program and save the highway trust fund from insolvency in 2014, congressional leaders have said they want to hear from ordinary communities, and local civic and business leaders,” said James Corless, director of Transportation for America. “Today, they got that chance, and our alliance will make sure they hear from even more communities going forward.”

The Capitol Hill event, dubbed “Local Economies, National Prosperity: Community leaders make the economic case for federal investment in transportation,” featured speakers from communities as diverse as Nashville, Salt Lake City, Sacramento, Minneapolis and Tampa Bay. Business leaders and mayors explained why it is critical for their economies that Congress not only rescue the sinking trust fund, but raise enough revenue so local communities can fix bottlenecks and broken bridges while building new connections to support future prosperity.

“Local business leaders recognize that the right transportation infrastructure is a matter of economic life or death,” said Will Schroeer, Director of Infrastructure for Economic Development for the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce and the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce. Underscoring the economic importance of transportation, he is the first joint appointment of the two chambers. “But we know we can’t go it alone, so it’s important to join with leaders from other communities to ensure that we have a strong federal partner.”

Participants in the day’s activities included Mayor Ben McAdams of Salt Lake County, UT; Mayor Mark Mallory of Cincinnati, OH; Mayor Ken Moore of Franklin, TN; Marc Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League and former mayor of New Orleans, LA; and Dave Williams, Vice President of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce, among many others.

“Transportation investments make common sense,“ Morial said. “Helping people of all wage levels get to work and get to jobs, helping employers get access to the widest community of employees. It’s something that all of us, people from all parts of the political spectrum should be able to agree on.”

In addition to inaugurating a new membership network of mayors and county executives, major employers, key institutions, civic groups and many others, such as those that participated in today’s event, T4America is also today launching a new and improved website, complete with new features and ways to get involved.

—

Transportation for America is an alliance of elected, business and civic leaders from communities across the country, united to ensure that states and the federal government step to invest in smart, homegrown, locally driven transportation solutions. These are the investments that hold the key to our future prosperity. Learn more at www.t4america.org

Release: New report highlights mounting challenge of aging bridges, ranks states

One in 9 bridges are “structurally deficient” as the average age nears 50 years. And more troubled bridges in our big cities than McDonald’s restaurants nationwide

WASHINGTON, D.C. – One in nine of the bridges and overpasses American drivers cross each day is rated in poor enough condition that some could become dangerous or be closed without near-term repair, according to an updated analysis of federal data released today by Transportation for America.

Nearly 67,000 of the nation’s 605,000 bridges are rated “structurally deficient” and are in need of substantial repair or replacement, according to bridge inspections analyzed in The Fix We’re In For: The State of the Nation’s Bridges 2013. Nearly 8,000 are both structurally deficient and “fracture critical”, meaning they are designed with no redundancy in their key structural components, so that if one fails the bridge could collapse. The Federal Highway Administration estimates that the backlog of troubled bridges would cost $76 billion to eliminate.

The report ranks states and the District of Columbia in terms of the overall condition of the their bridges, with one having the largest share of deficient bridges, 51 the lowest. Twenty-one states have a higher percentage of deficient bridges than the national average of 11 percent. The five states with the worst bridge conditions have a share over 20 percent: Pennsylvania has the largest share of deteriorating bridges (24.5%), followed by Oklahoma (22.0%), Iowa (21.7%), Rhode Island (21.6%), and South Dakota (20.3%).

At the other end of the spectrum, five states have less than 5 percent of their bridges rated structurally deficient: Nevada and Florida lead the rankings with 2.2%, followed by Texas (2.6%), Arizona (3.2%), and Utah (4.3%).

View the report, full data, interactive map and infographic here.

“With the collapse of the I-5 bridge in Washington state last month, coming just six years after an interstate collapse in Minnesota, Americans are acutely aware of the critical need to invest in our bridges as our system shows its age,” said James Corless, director of Transportation for America. “Today, though, there more deficient bridges in our 100 largest metropolitan areas than there are McDonald’s locations nationwide.” Put another way, laid end to end, all the deficient bridges would span from Washington, DC to Denver, Colorado or from Tijuana, Mexico to Seattle — more than 1500 miles.

The need is growing rapidly, the report notes: While most bridges are designed to last 50 years before major overhaul or replacement, American bridges average 43 years old. Age is a major factor in bridge conditions. Roughly half of the structurally deficient bridges are 65 or older. Today there are nearly 107,000 bridges 65 or older, and in just 10 years, one in four will be over 65.

Congress has repeatedly declared the condition and safety of our bridges to be of national significance. However, the money to fix them is getting harder to come by with declining gas tax revenues and a fiscal squeeze at all levels of government. At the same time, Congress made the prospects for bridges even more uncertain last year by eliminating a dedicated fund for them in its update of the federal transportation program. The new law also reduces access to funds for 90 percent of structurally deficient bridges, most of which are owned by cash-strapped local governments.

“Unfortunately, the changes Congress made last year left the health and safety of our bridges to compete with every other priority,” Corless said. “When it updates the law again next year, Congress should ensure that we have both adequate funding and accountability for fixing all our bridges, regardless of which level of government owns them.”

Some in Congress have recognized the issues and are moving to address them, among them U.S. Rep. Nick J. Rahall (D-WV), the ranking member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. “Congress simply cannot keep hitting the snooze button when it comes to needed investment in our Nation’s bridges or think that these aging structures can be rehabilitated with rhetoric,” Rahall said. “That is why I am introducing legislation that provides needed federal funding to start to address the startling backlog of structural deficient and functional obsolete bridges.”

The funding uncertainty comes as the rate of bridge repair has slowed dramatically in recent years.

Investments from the stimulus and ongoing transportation programs helped reduce the share of deficient bridges from 11.5 percent to 11 percent since our last report. But the overall repair rate has dropped significantly over the last 20 years. From 1992-1996 the number of deficient bridges declined by 17,000. However, from 2008-2012 the number dropped by only 4,966 – more than three times slower.

The authors suggest several recommendations to ensure that there is both funding for safe and well-maintained bridges and accountability for getting the job done, including:

  • Increase investment: Current spending levels are precarious and inadequate. In order to bring our rapidly aging infrastructure up to a state of good repair, Congress should raise new, dedicated revenues for surface transportation programs, including bridge repair.
  • Restore funding for the 180,000-plus bridges that lost eligibility under the new federal transportation program: Under MAP-21, all of the money previously set aside for bridge repair was rolled into the new National Highway Performance Program, and only 10 percent of deficient bridges – and 23 percent of all bridges – are eligible. Congress must restore funding access for all previously eligible bridges.
  • Prioritize Repair: Congress should require states to set aside a share of their NHPP funds for bridge repair unless the state’s bridges are certified as being in a state of good repair.

View the report, full data, interactive map and infographic here.

Recognizing the Life and Service of Senator and Transportation Advocate Frank Lautenberg

On the news of Senator Frank Lautenberg’s (D-NJ) passing this morning, Transportation for America director James Corless released the following statement.

Our condolences go out to the family, friends and colleagues of Senator Frank Lautenberg as they mourn the loss of a man who had served his country in almost every way possible, from humble beginnings in Paterson, New Jersey, to brave service in World War II, to decades as a businessman, and to almost 30 years of service in the United States Senate.

From his tireless advocacy for our nation’s passenger rail system, to safety and comfort for travelers on planes, trains and automobiles, and his recent work as a champion for a more performance-based multimodal transportation system, Senator Lautenberg’s impact on transportation policy is hard to overstate.

In the last transportation reauthorization discussions, he was the strongest voice for creating a holistic national freight policy to ensure that ports and freight systems can make multimodal investments to move goods more efficiently. And before the last transportation law ever expired, he began promoting performance measures and stronger accountability in the new law as a way to ensure that billions of transportation dollars would be well spent and result in a system that’s safer, cleaner, and more efficient. Portions of his freight policies were incorporated into MAP-21 last summer, a bill that also began the transition toward a performance-based 21st century transportation system.

Whether riding an Amtrak train or enjoying a smoke-free trip on an airplane, just to name a few, millions of Americans enjoy the fruit of his service. He will be missed, but his legacy as an advocate for a multimodal transportation system that works to better move goods and people is secure.

Tragic bridge collapse in Washington highlights urgent problem of aging and deficient US bridges

For Immediate Release
Contact: Stephen Davis
202-955-5543 x242
202-569-8218
steve.davis@t4america.org

or David Goldberg
202-412-7930

Transportation for America issued the following statement following last night’s collapse of the Interstate 5 bridge over the Skagit River near Mount Vernon, Washington.

“The shocking collapse of a busy Interstate 5 bridge over the Skagit River in Washington State highlights the issue of our country’s aging bridges and what we’re doing to address them. Thankfully, no one was killed or even seriously injured in this collapse, which could not be said about the last high profile bridge collapse in Minnesota.

Nationwide, more than one in ten bridges is rated structurally deficient, in need of close monitoring, urgent repairs, rehabilitation or replacement. We take more than 260 million trips over deficient bridges each day. In just our 102 largest metro areas alone, there are more deficient bridges than there are McDonald’s restaurants in the entire country, 18,000 versus 14,000.

While this particular bridge was not considered structurally deficient at the time of its collapse, it is one of thousands that are well past their intended lifespan and carrying far more traffic than intended at the time they were built. The typical bridge is 43 years old with a design life of 50 years.

Considering that progress on repairing deficient bridges has slowed in the last ten years, Congress took a major gamble in last summer’s new transportation law (MAP-21) by eliminating dedicated funding for repairing highway bridges. Now bridge repair is forced to compete with other transportation needs for funding.

At the same time, our chief source of repair dollars – the federal gas tax – is declining as Americans drive more fuel-efficient cars and fewer miles. Congress urgently needs to address both our funding priorities and how we will pay for them in the face of an aging system and growing population, before the next preventable bridge collapse strands commuters, cripples a local economy and claims lives.”

Reaction to President Obama’s nomination of Mayor Anthony Foxx as U.S. DOT Secretary

Responding to President Obama’s nomination of Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Transportation, Transportation for America Director James Corless issued this statement:

“Transportation for America congratulates Mayor Foxx on his nomination as transportation secretary. We are delighted to see a mayor of one of our up-and-coming economic centers selected to provide national leadership on implementing the provisions of MAP-21 and laying the groundwork for what we hope will be a rejuvenated national program. As a metropolitan region in the booming Sun Belt, Charlotte has become a leader in embracing transportation innovations and high-quality public transportation as key building blocks of a prosperous economy.

The long recession and related budget woes, along with the trend of flattening gas tax receipts, have left states and localities struggling to meet the needs of a growing and diversifying population. As the elected head of a major city, Mayor Foxx is more likely than most to understand the issues facing localities and states. We wish him success during the confirmation process.”

T4 America releases new guide to implementing MAP-21

Transportation for America today released an easy-to-follow handbook to help stakeholders understand and engage in implementing the new federal transportation law adopted last summer.

Making the Most of MAP-21: A Guide to the 2012 Federal Transportation Law — And How to Use it for Positive Change in Your Community features both narrative chapters and two-page explainers on the key features of the new program, from the consolidated highway program to the new transportation alternatives, as well as new financing options.

“Making the Most of MAP-21 is in an invaluable tool for those at the municipal level who are seeking both to understand the scope of the changes in the federal law, and determine how they can effect change at the local level,” said John Robert Smith, the co-chair of T4 America and the former four-term mayor of Meridian, MS.

After nearly three years of extensions of the expired previous transportation law, Congress in July adopted Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st century, or MAP-21. While it stopped short of providing more robust funding or a sweeping vision for infrastructure in the 21st century, MAP- 21 makes significant changes to federal transportation policy.

For one, it will mean that much more will depend now upon how well state departments of transportation manage affairs and attend to the needs of all their constituents. Federal law no longer sets aside a minimum amount of money for repairing our roads and bridges, leaving it to states to decide whether to repair or replace what we have, or to build new facilities that will themselves need to be maintained. More types of projects now compete for the money allocated to metropolitan areas. The law cuts by a third the money dedicated to make our roads and neighborhoods safer for walking or biking, but it gives localities more direct control over what remains.

“MAP-21 provides some opportunities for communities like ours to win federal support for our vision for a better future – but only if we know when, where and how to affect the decision-making process,” said Peter McLaughlin, a commissioner in Hennepin County, MN. “With this handbook, T4America has given us a road map for doing that.”

The handbook includes handy reference tables for funding by program for each state, as well as public transportation apportionments, bridge conditions, pedestrian and bicycle fatalities, the impact of transit service on local congestion and transportation costs by metro. It also offers a compendium of arguments that community supporters can use to bolster their desire to broaden local transportation options, make their streets safer and keep their system in good repair.

Find the handbook on the web with all of T4 America MAP-21 resources at https://t4america.org/resources/map-21.

Transportation for America Response to Senate EPW Reauthorization Bill

After the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee moved their draft transportation bill (MAP-21) out of committee with a successful bipartisan vote this morning, T4 America Director James Corless offered this statement:

“The bipartisan passage of the MAP-21 bill in the Senate EPW Committee this morning provides a significant opportunity to move forward on a long overdue authorization of federal transportation policy with full funding to ensure we invest in America’s infrastructure. Key reforms in the bill would place a stronger emphasis on repairing and rebuilding our roads and bridges, while instituting performance measures that will help hold agencies accountable for the maintenance and operations of our transportation network.

“We will work with Chairman Boxer and Ranking Member Inhofe and the rest of the Committee to ensure that there is dedicated funding that prioritizes bicycle and pedestrian projects, strong workforce development provisions and smart transportation planning reforms. We are eager to address these issues so we can put the full strength and weight of our coalition behind the bill as it moves forward in order to make the most of our federal transportation dollars, put people back to work and deliver the transportation system that Americans need.”

New Report Ranks Deficient Bridges by Metro Areas

A new look at structurally deficient bridges in metropolitan areas finds that just a quarter of U.S. bridges, located in our largest metropolitan areas, carry 75 percent of all traffic crossing a deficient bridge each day.

Click to learn more or download the full report, which includes data for all 102 metropolitan areas over 500,000 people.

On the heels of the sudden closure of a major commuting bridge in Louisville, KY, a new report shows that more than 18,000 of the nation’s busiest bridges, clustered in the nation’s metro areas, are rated as “structurally deficient,” according to this new report from Transportation for America.

In Los Angeles, for example, an average 396 drivers cross a deficient bridge every second, the study found. The Fix We’re In For: The State of Our Nation’s Busiest Bridges, ranks 102 metro areas in three population categories based on the percentage of deficient bridges.

The report found that Pittsburgh, PA had the highest percentage of deficient bridges (30.4 percent) for a metro area with a population of over 2 million (and overall). Oklahoma City, OK (19.8 percent) topped the chart for metro areas between 1-2 million, as did Tulsa, OK (27.5 percent) for metro areas between 500,000-1 million.

At the other end of the spectrum, the metro areas that had the smallest percentage of deficient bridges are: Orlando, FL (0.60 percent) for the largest metro areas; Las Vegas (0.20 percent) for mid-sized metro areas; and Fort Myers, FL (0.30 percent) for smaller metro areas.

“There are more deficient bridges in our metropolitan areas than there are McDonald’s restaurants in the entire country,” said James Corless, director of Transportation for America, 18,239 versus roughly 14,000 McDonald’s. “These metropolitan-area bridges are most costly and difficult to fix, but they also are the most urgent, because they carry such a large share of the nation’s people and goods.”

Nearly 70,000 bridges nationwide are rated “structurally deficient” and are in need of substantial repair or replacement, according to federal data. Metropolitan-area bridges carry 75 percent of the trips that are made on structurally deficient bridges, he noted.

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) estimates that the backlog of potentially dangerous bridges would cost $70.9 billion to eliminate, while the federal outlay for bridges amounts to slightly more than $5 billion per year.

“The recent shutdown of the Sherman-Minton Bridge between Kentucky and Indiana was yet another reminder of the urgent need to repair our nation’s bridges,” Corless said. “A sincere initiative to fix these bridges would put thousands of people to work while ensuring that these critical links continue to carry people safely to work and that goods can make it to market, now and well into the future.”

Congress has repeatedly declared the condition and safety of America’s bridges to be of national significance. However, the current federal program falls short of the need, even as it allows states to shift funds from maintenance toward new construction, whether or not they can show progress toward rehabilitating deficient bridges.

Some states have worked hard to address the problem and have seen their backlog of deficient bridges shrink in number. However, two problems continue to persist: Existing federal programs offer no real incentives or assurances that aging bridges will actually get fixed; and the current level of investment is nowhere near what is needed to keep up with our rapidly growing backlog of aging bridges.

Last month, President Obama introduced his jobs bill before the Brent Spence bridge in Cincinnati, OH, just weeks after engineers shutdown the Sherman-Minton Bridge due to cracks in the bridge supports, and also identified potential faults in the nearby Kennedy Bridge. Since then, the President has regularly highlighted the poor state of our nation’s bridges and the need to pass a jobs bill that will put construction workers and engineers back to work repairing our bridges and highways.

“The poor condition of our bridges is a problem that is not going away,” said Andy Herrmann, president-elect of the American Society of Civil Engineers, “Most of the nation’s bridges were designed to last 50 years, and today, roughly a third are already 50 years or older.”

In order to prevent future catastrophes on our nation’s roads and bridges, the report recommends that Congress should:

  • Provide states with increased resources to repair and rebuild. States need federal support to back their efforts to prioritize repair and maintenance.
  • Ensure that funds sent to states for bridge repair are used only for that purpose, unless a state can show it has addressed its repair needs.
  • Require that new or rehabilitated be built so that they are safe for everyone who uses them, whether they are in vehicles, on foot or bicycle, or using public transit.

President Obama’s Ohio visit again highlights the vast and growing need to address America’s aging and deficient bridges

On the same day the President visits a critical bridge in Cincinnati, these state and county level data and an interactive map of structurally deficient bridges across the U.S. shows that bridge repair needs touch every community.

President Obama’s visit to the Brent Spence Bridge bordering Ohio and Kentucky calls much-needed attention to the urgency of bridge repair and rehabilitation throughout the country. Those needs are clearly visible in the detailed state-by-state reports, and county level bridge data (including an interactive, searchable map of every deficient bridge in America) being made available today at https://t4america.org/resources/bridges/states/.

The President’s event comes on the heels of last week’s closure of the 49-year old Sherman Minton Bridge over the Ohio River between Louisville, Kentucky and New Albany, Indiana after cracks were found in the support structure. Like similar bridges nationwide, the heavily travelled bridge is crucial to the economy of both states and for commuters crossing the river to get to work.

Today, nearly 70,000 bridges nationwide— about one in nine —are classified as “structurally deficient,” in need of close monitoring and near-term repair, according to data from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Transportation agencies would need $70.9 billion to overcome the current backlog of deficient bridges.

“As the President has noted, a serious effort to address the backlog of structurally deficient bridges would be an immediate source of jobs, doing work that desperately needs to be done,” said James Corless, director of Transportation for America. “Our coalition members, in nearly every state of the union, have long noted this situation, and are gratified to hear the call echoed by high-profile leaders.”

Transportation for America’s spring report, “The Fix We’re In For: The State of Our Nation’s Bridges” tallied the structurally deficient bridges nationwide. T4 America is also making available county-by-county lists of structurally deficient bridges, and their rankings, for those who would like to evaluate the depth of their own local needs.

In addition to funding needed maintenance today, T4 America urges Congress to also enact tough guidelines in the next transportation bill to ensure that precious taxpayer dollars prioritize making existing bridges safe. One logical step forward would be Senator Ben Cardin’s Preservation and Renewal of Federal-Aid Highways Act, which would require the Secretary of Transportation to establish “state of good repair” standards for highways and bridges that receive federal funding, ensuring that federal dollars are targeted toward the most pressing needs first and holding states accountable for improving the condition of their infrastructure.

“Congress has a dual task right now of giving a weak economy a needed boost while creating the conditions for future growth and economic opportunity,” Corless added. “Providing a near-term boost to rebuild infrastructure, coupled with a comprehensive update of the long-term federal transportation bill will put people to work building the physical assets that will serve the country for decades to come. We appreciate the President’s focus on infrastructure and look forward to working with both the administration and Congress on getting something done.”

You can learn more about “The Fix We’re in For: The State of Our Nation’s Bridges” at https://t4america.org/resources/bridges/

New report highlights mounting challenge of aging bridges

One in 9 rated “structurally deficient” as average age nears 50 years. In state rankings, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma and Iowa have largest backlog of deficient bridges

WASHINGTON, D.C. – One in nine of the bridges and overpasses American drivers cross each day is rated in poor enough condition that they could become dangerous or be closed without near-term repair, according to a report released today by Transportation for America.

Nearly 70,000 bridges nationwide are rated “structurally deficient” and are in need of substantial repair or replacement, according to federal data. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) estimates that the backlog of potentially dangerous bridges would cost $70.9 billion to eliminate, while the federal outlay for bridges amounts to slightly more than $5 billion per year.

The report, The Fix We’re In For: The State of the Nation’s Bridges, ranks states in terms of the overall condition of the state’s bridges, with one being the worst, 51 being the best. Twenty-three states across the country have a higher percentage of deficient bridges than the national average of 11.5 percent.

The five states with the worst bridge conditions have over 20 percent structurally deficient bridges: Pennsylvania has the largest share of deteriorating bridges at 26.5 percent, followed by Oklahoma (22.0%), Iowa (21.7%), Rhode Island (21.6%), and South Dakota (20.3%).

At the other end of the spectrum, five states have less than 5 percent of their bridges rated structurally deficient: Nevada leads the rankings at 2.2 percent, followed by Florida (2.4%), Texas (3.0%), Arizona (3.0%), and Utah (4.5%). The table on the bottom of the main report page shows all 50 states and the District of Columbia ranked by their percentage of structurally deficient bridges, with “1” being the worst conditions and “51” the best.

“Since the 2007 collapse of the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis, Americans have been acutely aware of the critical need to maintain our bridges,” said James Corless, director of Transportation for America. That need is growing rapidly, the report authors noted, as the average age of bridges passes 42 years for bridges that mostly were designed to have a 50-year lifespan before reconstruction or replacement.

“As Congress takes up the next six-year transportation bill, it is imperative that we devote a larger share of funding to protecting our bridges” Corless said. “Americans also want to see more accountability for maintaining our infrastructure: 64 percent of voters say that the way government currently spends money on building and maintaining our transportation infrastructure is inefficient and unwise, according to a February poll for the Rockefeller Foundation.”

Hit the jump to see the full state rankings

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Though a Worthy Down Payment, Stimulus Raises Urgent Need for New Transportation Vision

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Contact:
David Goldberg
202-412-7930
david.goldberg@t4america.org
Ben Grossman-Cohen
202-478-6185
bgrossman-cohen@mrss.com

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The transportation spending priorities in the stimulus bill conference report passed by the House of Representatives today are a significant departure from the status quo and ought to represent the leading edge of a major new thrust in our national infrastructure policy. The Senate is expected to pass the conference report as soon as tonight.

Given the need for haste in crafting the bill, congressional and Administration negotiators were handcuffed by backward-looking, existing programs even as they tried to shape investments for a future of reduced oil dependency, greater opportunity for Americans to join the middle class and cleaner transportation choices. Despite some shortcomings resulting from current transportation law, Congress has adopted a bill that if properly enacted by state and local authorities, could be a down payment on a new direction for America’s infrastructure:

  • $27.5 billion allocated to the Surface Transportation Program (STP) that should go a long way to restoring our transportation networks to a state of good repair. Unfortunately, Congress neglected to include language ensuring this money is prioritized to fix crumbling roads and bridges, so now the onus is on state and local governments to ensure these funds are not spent improperly.
  • Unprecedented flexibility for spending STP funds — traditionally spent mostly on highways — on ports, transit, passenger and freight rail or other projects as national, state or regional needs may require.
  • A significant share of transportation dollars directed to local decision makers and metropolitan regions rather than state departments of transportation.
  • $8.4 billion for public transportation, recognizing the strong and growing demand for transit service. However, none of these funds can be used to prevent cuts in service and jobs at transit agencies suffering from massive budget shortfalls. It is up to Congress to ensure this gap is filled in upcoming appropriations negotiations.
  • $9.3 billion for intercity and high-speed passenger rail, an encouraging indication that Congress realizes how important it is to expand alternatives to our overburdened highway and aviation networks.
  • The inclusion of up to $825 million for projects that will make our streets safer for walking and biking, providing help for commuters who have increasingly turned to these alternatives to save money and increase their physical activity.

When President Obama signs the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, it will provide a down payment on the transportation investment needed to get our economy moving. But the urgency of recreating our national transportation program to address the challenges of the future is more starkly clear than ever.

Now Congress and the Obama-Biden administration must begin consideration of the successor legislation to the expiring SAFETEA-LU law — our current, 1950s-era federal transportation program. This critically important legislation must provide a new 21st Century vision for investment in our transportation system that is safer, healthier, cleaner, more equitable and smarter so that our nation can compete and thrive in the future economy.