National Infrastructure Week Highlights the Need for Upgrades in the U.S.
As the 6th annual National Infrastructure Week kicks off, U.S. businesses, workers, officials, and citizens are joining together to advocate for America’s future. Across the country nearly 400 affiliates will host events and educate policymakers on the importance of upgrading America’s infrastructure in order to grow the economy by relieving the stresses put on roads, bridges, airports, pipelines, and our wireless infrastructure.
According to the World Economic Forum the U.S. is ranked tenth in terms of infrastructure quality, lagging behind countries such as Japan, France, United Arab Emirates and South Korea. If we want to remain competitive on the world economic stage, we must prioritize critical infrastructure improvements.
In 2017 America’s infrastructure received a D+ on the American Society of Civil Engineers’ quadrennial Infrastructure Report Card. The study found that 28% of major urban roads are in substandard or poor condition, 2 out of every 5 miles of urban interstates in the U.S. are congested, and 1 out of every 5 miles of U.S. highway pavement is in poor condition.
Roads are just one example—investments are needed in our network of energy infrastructure as well. There are more than 2.5 million miles of petrochemical pipelines operating throughout the country, and more than two thirds of the population depends on this network to meet their everyday energy needs. As demand for these products, specifically natural gas, continues to increase, it’s becoming more vital that the infrastructure necessary to transport them safely is developed.
The GAIN Coalition is always paying close attention to the infrastructure issues that our country faces, but this week we are taking the opportunity to bring more stakeholders into the conversation and encourage investments that will allow us to propel forward, not lag behind.
The time to invest in our nation’s infrastructure is now. It’s #TimeToBuild.
