Nearly 224,000 U.S. bridges need major repair work or should be replaced, according to ARTBA’s analysis of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) 2021 National Bridge Inventory database. That figure represents 36 percent of all U.S. bridges and represents an estimated cost of $260 billion, according to the association.
If placed end-to-end, these bridges would stretch over 6,100 miles—long enough to crisscross the country from Los Angeles to Portland, Maine, and back again, said ARTBA Chief Economist Dr. Alison Premo Black, who conducted the analysis.
Watch her video summary below.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) provides states with significant new resources to make long overdue infrastructure improvements, including bridge repairs. Congress and the Biden administration have yet to release much of the additional funding, however, because they have not enacted a full-year FY 2022 transportation appropriations law at the IIJA-authorized investment levels. The current continuing resolution, which holds spending for most federal surface transportation programs flat at FY 2021 levels, ends Feb. 18.
“The longer it takes to bridge the political divide on the FY 2022 spending bills, the longer it will take for transportation improvements to get started,” said Dave Bauer, president/CEO Dave Bauer, in a prepared statement. “We urge Congress to act forthwith so that the American people can begin to realize the benefits of the historic investments in the bipartisan infrastructure law.”
Source: ARTBA
