Nonpartisan Group Compiles Report on Infrastructure Reform
In a detailed report, the Committee for Economic Development of the Conference Board made recommendations for improving America’s roads and bridges. The nonprofit, non-partisan, business-led public-policy organization delivers analysis and solutions to critical national issues.
Noting that the National Highway System carries more than 75% of heavy truck traffic as well as 40% of all highway traffic and 90% of all tourist traffic, CED made several recommendations in its report, including more private investment in road building and maintenance, streamlining regulatory review, improving project selection, investing in technology and moving toward user fees to fund roads and bridges.
The study was spurred by discussions by Congress and the Trump Administration to increase investment in repairing, expanding and modernizing the country’s infrastructure. The report, Fixing America’s Roads & Bridges: The Path Forward, examines the role U.S. surface transportation plays in economic activity.
The report recommended greater private sector investment because lifecycle costs are better incorporated into the upfront cost of a project. Private money also incentivizes faster project completion because delays can incur contractual penalties as well as rewards, according to the study. Businesses were also seen as a way to increase the adoption of cost-saving technologies.
On the public side of things, CED encouraged public officials to be smarter about selecting projects based on a data-driven approach. Rather than putting political needs (pork projects) at the forefront of project selection, investment decisions should be made with the entire transportation network in mind instead of on a stand-alone basis.
CED also advocated for more reliance on user fees to cover operational and maintenance costs using mileage-based fees. These fees can fluctuate based on the demand for road space at particular times of the day through managed traffic lanes in congested areas. The belief is that travelers are more willing to pay a fee or a premium …Read the rest of this story
