A report released by the American Society of Civil Engineers shows that with ingenuity and the right amount of commitment on the part of the nation's leaders and the American people, the infrastructure crisis is a solvable problem.


ASCE released the most recent grades from its Report Card for America's Infrastructure, assigning the nation's roads, bridges, water systems and other critical foundations a cumulative grade of D and noting a five-year investment need of $2.2 trillion.

The report is accompanied by an in-depth Web site (www.asce.org/reportcard) that offers state-level infrastructure data on a variety of subjects, as well as suggested ways for individuals to take action.

"Increasing our investment in infrastructure is important, but the solution will involve more than just money," said ASCE president D. Wayne Klotz. "It will take sound technology, wise community planning and involved citizens willing to partner with the government and private sector to make real change."

While the comprehensive Report Card provides a great deal of information on the impact of failing infrastructure, it also focuses on ways the nation can begin addressing these critical deficiencies.

Each category of infrastructure includes not only a list of sector specific solutions, but also a series of case studies on how individual communities are already addressing the needs of their residents. For example, in the Roads category ,solutions include reforming the federal highway program to emphasize performance management, cost-benefit analysis and accountability, as well as addressing the long-term viability of fuel taxes for transportation funding, and exploring the viability of the most promising options to strengthen this funding.

Finally, the report also presents detailed breakdown of the investment needs across all 15 categories assessed, including current spending estimates, five-year needed investments, funding provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) and the remaining shortfall.

The 2009 Report Card was developed by an advisory council of 28 civil engineers representing each of the infrastructure categories, as well as a broad spectrum of civil engineering disciplines. Each category was evaluated on the basis of capacity, condition, funding, future need, operation and maintenance, public safety and resilience.