The nation’s infastructure is aging

WorldNetDaily: Bridge collapse no freak accident: “An estimated $1.6 trillion is needed over five years to bring America’s infrastructure up to ’safe standards.’
‘The nation is failing to even maintain the substandard conditions we currently have,’ said the report card from the American Society of Civil Engineers, ‘a dangerous trend that is affecting highway safety, as well as the health of the economy.’
‘Ignoring bad infrastructure and hoping it will do no harm is not an option anymore,’ says Rooney. ‘Places that take care of their infrastructure are safer, healthier and more prosperous.’ “

The truth of the matter is that we do not have the money to fix our infrastructure. The costs are much higher than the 1.6 trillion that you estimate. In addition to bridges, sewers and water lines, all of our interstates need to be widened, the railroads rebuilt, most old city streets need to be redone and many other things need to be taken care of to meet the population increases of this country.

Infrastructure is aging in private utilities and industry as well. Oil refineries need to be replaced, power and telephone lines upgraded, dams, nuclear and conventional power plants etc. Everything should have been be on a schedule of replacement so that the costs are spread out over scores of years. Everything has a lifespan. Since we have been largely ignoring that fact and have been living on the work of the previous generation we will see a band-aid approach and more major breakdowns in both the public and private infrastructure.

During the next depression perhaps rebuilding the aging infrastructure is what people will be doing for that bowl of soup. Or perhaps we will just soon have the infrastructure of a third world nation.