Just how much money is needed to improve the nation’s highways and bridges? It all depends on how you add up the numbers.
Lobbyists and lawmakers often cite the American Society of Civil Engineers’ estimate of $1.6 trillion over the next five years. The problem is, that figure includes a lot of infrastructure spending outside the transportation realm.
The $1.6 trillion sum includes $50 billion for improving the nation’s power grid, $286 billion for school spending and $41.6 billion to dispose of hazardous wastes.
That’s $477 billion right there that wouldn’t touch an overpass or exit ramp.
ASCE officials say they are aware the figure occasionally “gets misunderstood.”
“We have noted a couple times that clearly this does not just apply to transportation or roads or bridges, the $1.6 [trillion] refers to everything,” said Charles “Casey” Dinges, a senior member of ASCE, which produced the estimate as part of its 2005 “report card” on U.S. infrastructure.
Still, a good majority of the total sum — more than $1 trillion — is transpor-tation-related when aviation, navigable
waterways and transit are included.
Also important to note, Dinges said, is that spread over five years, the
ly that much on infrastructure already.
And the American Society of Civil Engineers isn’t exactly out on a limb in calling for massive investment for infrastructure.
At least $225 billion a year for the next 50 years is needed to upgrade the coun-
Five-year investment needs for U.S. infrastructure
Roads/Bridges.........................................................................$628 billion Schools .........................................................................................$268 billion Transit ........................................................................................ $219.5 billion Drinking water/waste water..........................................$115 billion Aviation ............................................................................................$67 billion Rail.......................................................................................................$61 billion U.S. electric power grid ........................................................$50 billion Navigable waterways ............................................................$50 billion Hazardous waste .................................................................$41.6 billion Dams.................................................................................................... $5 billion Public parks and recreation.............................................$3.3 billion 2% annual inflation over 5 years ...............................$124 billion TOTAL ....................................................................... $1.6 trillion
Source: American Society of Civil Engineers
amount of money needed to improve infrastructure comes to $320 billion a year, which converts to the less daunting figure of $160 billion, factoring in that the government is spending rough-
try’s transportation system alone, according to the recommendations of the bipartisan National Surface Transportation Policy and Revenue Study Commission.
BY ARI NATTER
California transportation officials have cancelled plans to add congestion tolling to the Golden Gate Bridge after a disagreement with the federal government over how much to increase the toll.
“They wanted a program that was more aggressive than we were willing to do,” said Randy Rentschler, spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, which represents nine counties in the Bay Area.
The decision presents a blow to the Bush Administration’s push to encourage national acceptance of congestion pricing, where tolls vary depending on factors such as time of day or traffic volume.
The San Francisco area was the recipient of $158 million in federal funding for the project after being deemed last summer one of the winners in a national contest that rewarded large cities with “innovative ways” of fighting traffic, including congestion pricing.
Local officials don’t plan on returning the bulk of the money anytime soon, however.
Instead, the Metropolitan Transportation Commission is in
talks with the Department of Transportation to keep $145 mil-
lion for the implementation of variable parking meters instead.
DOT officials said San Francisco’s revised proposal is under review.
“More than 15 major cities have proposals to implement congestion pricing projects in the future, so clearly the idea is taking off,” said a DOT spokeswoman, who noted the San Francisco area just announced plans for a “massive” conversion to high occupancy tolling lanes.
California officials said they balked at the idea of congestion pricing for the bridge, which already carries a $5 toll, after federal officials said they wanted them to have more than a dollar differential increase as part of their congestion pricing plan.
“It became clear eventually that the federal government wanted a much bolder pricing experiment than we here in the Bay Area were prepared to do,” said Rentschler. “There is no doubt they were pushing pretty hard.”
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