What Needs To Be Done To Fix America’s Infrastructure

Not many people will think about infrastructure until it actually affects them. Roads and bridges are taken for granted until there are potholes and constant construction. With all this said, there seems to be no solution in sight. Here’s what America needs to do to fix its infrastructure.

Funding

One of the largest obstacles in the way of fixing infrastructure in America is that there is a funding issue. Projects all across the country are sitting on the shelf, as there are not enough resources for cities to do them in a timely manner. Often, cities are unable to complete these projects in the first place or do them to the best of their abilities. As a result, a lot of infrastructure spending goes towards repairing the poor job that was done previously. To effectively combat this and fix infrastructure, cities across the country need the government to allocate the funds to overhaul infrastructure.

Roads and Bridges

The most common signs of America’s crumbling infrastructure are the roads and bridges that people drive on that are littered with potholes and cracks that worsen over time. There are measures to protect these roads and bridges, such as regular maintenance and weighing large trucks, but this is not enough. There are so many trucks moving throughout the country and thousands of cars that these roads and bridges quickly fall into disarray before the city can make any repairs. Often, construction workers who would fix these roads focus on larger projects, such as expanding highways.

Public Transportation

Many think that expanding highways is an infrastructure solution, as it will reduce traffic and streamline people going through roads, better protecting them. Unfortunately, this benefit quickly gets overtaken by more cars as soon traffic expands to fill available capacity, also known as the Fundamental Law of Congestion. The country needs to give public transportation an upheaval to get more cars off the road and better allocate resources to fixing infrastructure. High-speed rail across the country and local buses within cities can significantly take the strain off already existing public roads, paving the way for modern and effective infrastructure.

This is what needs to be done to fix America’s infrastructure, and it is going to take a lot of work. Unfortunately, there is no clear and easy solution as many different parties have to agree. Still, if they try and find a way forward, they should consider giving some attention to public transportation.