Last week a group of experts came together on National Public Radio’s Diane Rehm Show to discuss the challenges posed by our nation’s aging infrastructure. With more than 60,000 bridges in the U.S. in a state of serious decline, the big question on everyone minds is how to pay for the necessary replacements and repairs.
Mike Hoover, Sundt’s Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, agrees with many transportation construction and policy experts: the creation of a highway reauthorization bill is critical. Federal funding supports more than half of states’ transportation construction, but the existing bill, MAP-21, expires on September 30. At the same time, the highway trust fund, which uses gas taxes to fund many federal highway programs in every state, will be depleted by the end of August if Congress doesn’t act.
What are the obstacles to the passage of a new bill? Can public-private partnerships provide a funding solution? Are there other creative funding mechanisms being proposed and considered? Click here to listen to the show to and find out what the panelists (listed below) and callers had to say.
Robert Puentes, senior fellow, Metropolitan Policy Program, The Brookings Institution
Chris Edwards, economist and editor of DownsizingGovernment.org, Cato Institute
Fawn Johnson, correspondent, National Journal
Phineas Baxandall, federal budget and tax analyst, U.S. Public Interest Research Group
Patrick Jones, executive director and CEO, International Bridge, Tunnel & Turnpike Association (IBTTA)