The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) has called for the formation of a presidential commission on infrastructure to address the deteriorating conditions of our nation’s roads, bridges, drinking water systems, schools and other public works.

The call for action was announced Sept. 4 as the group released its 2003 Progress Report for America’s Infrastructure.

The Report reveals that little has improved since the nation’s infrastructure received an overall D+ on ASCE’s 2001 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure, with the price tag for infrastructure renewal escalating from $1.3 trillion over a five-year period in 2001 to $1.6 trillion over a five-year period.

"It’s clear that we must adopt a coordinated national approach to the development and maintenance of our infrastructure, and that the choices and decisions we must make will affect the health, safety and prosperity of every citizen of this country," said ASCE President Thomas L. Jackson, P.E., F.ASCE. "Just as President Reagan appointed the first national commission on infrastructure, I call on President Bush to consider demonstrating similar leadership through the appointment of a new federal commission to develop America’s infrastructure agenda for the 21st century."

In the mid-80’s, President Ronald Reagan appointed a commission to study and report the state of the nation’s infrastructure. The commission concluded that the state of America’s infrastructure was a "C" in their 1988 report, Fragile Foundations: A Report on

America’s Infrastructure, firing the first public warnings that America’s infrastructure was in decline.

While solutions to repair our crumbling infrastructure can be addressed through a renewed partnership between citizens, the private sector and local, state and federal governments, a coordinated effort from the top-down is needed to resolve the nation’s infrastructure woes once and for all. In the interim, reauthorization of The Transportation Equity Act of the 21st Century (TEA-21) and passage of the Clean Water Act, and the Safe Drinking Water Act can provide critical funding to repair our aging and overburdened transportation and water infrastructure.

For more information, including local infrastructure conditions and state infrastructure statistics, visit http://www.asce.org/reportcard.

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