With Gas Prices Low, Congress Has Opportunity to #FixTheTrustFund
August 08, 2016
Last month’s average gas price in the U.S. was the lowest for July since 2004. Cheap gas coupled with an improved economy is spurring Americans to drive more. After a decrease during the recession, vehicle miles traveled (VMT) is climbing again. Summer is the busiest time on U.S. roads and many drivers will find themselves......
TIGER Grants: They’re Grrrrrreat!
August 04, 2016
Last Friday the U.S. Department of Transportation announced the 40 projects that will share $485 million in TIGER grants in FY16. This is the eighth round of TIGER grants (properly called the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery program). The program was authorized as a part of the 2009 recovery act to support innovative projects that......
California’s Orange County Infrastructure Isn’t Improving
July 21, 2016
The Orange County Branch of the American Society of Civil Engineers today released its 2016 Orange County Infrastructure Report Card, grading 12 categories of the county’s infrastructure, resulting in an overall grade point average of “C+.” The Report Card was developed in collaboration with the UC Irvine Civil and Environmental Engineering Affiliates, an advisory group......
Inaugural Round of FASTLANE Grant Recipients Released
July 13, 2016
The U.S. Department of Transportation provided to Congress last week the list of 18 recipients of the first annual round of FASTLANE grants. The FASTLANE program was authorized by the FAST Act to fund critical freight and highway projects of national or regional significance. The grants can be used for highway, port, freight rail and intermodal......
Happy 60th Birthday, Interstate Highway System!
June 29, 2016
The History of the Interstate Highway System Over 60 years ago President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 and in doing so created the Interstate Highway System (IHS). President Eisenhower explained the necessity of an interstate system in a 1955 statement to Congress: “Together, the uniting forces of our communication and......
Congratulations USDOT Smart Cities Challenge Winner, Columbus!
June 28, 2016
The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) revealed Columbus, Ohio, was the winner of their Smart Cities Challenge, showcasing an innovative transportation strategy made possible through investment in smart city technology. Like ASCE’s #GameChangers project which shows inspiring examples of innovative trends happening with our nation’s infrastructure, all 77 of the proposals submitted to the Challenge......
New Jersey Legislators Introduce Bills to Fix the Transportation Trust Fund
June 21, 2016
Only a few days after the release of the 2016 Report Card for New Jersey’s Infrastructure, the political debate over saving the State’s soon to be insolvent Transportation Trust Fund (TTF) looms over both the New Jersey Senate and General Assembly. Yesterday, legislators in both chambers introduced identical bills to replenish the Fund, from which......
New Jersey Infrastructure Receives D+ Report Card
June 16, 2016
Today, the 2016 Report Card for New Jersey’s Infrastructure gave an overall D+ grade for the State’s infrastructure. The report evaluated 13 separate components of New Jersey’s infrastructure, all of which were given a grade based on the components’ condition, capacity, funding, future need, operation and maintenance, public safety, resilience, and innovation. The transit and......
House Passes Resolution Limiting Options to Fix the Highway Trust Fund
June 10, 2016
Today the U.S. House of Representatives passed H. Con. Res. 112, a resolution introduced by Rep. Boustany (R-LA) and co-sponsored by 11 Republicans expressing Congress’ opposition to new fees on oil. As yesterday’s blog post highlighted, this resolution may be non-binding, but it puts Congress on the record in opposition to a viable option for......
Congressional Vote Could Limit Options to #FixTheTrustFund
June 09, 2016
Tomorrow the U.S. House of Representatives will vote on H. Con. Res. 112, a concurrent resolution introduced by Rep. Boustany (R-LA) and co-sponsored by 11 Republicans that would express Congress’ opposition to new fees on oil. While non-binding, the resolution would put Congress on the record as opposing one option for fixing the Highway Trust......