Crumbling and congested U.S. roadways are driving up costs for U.S. manufacturers as late deliveries and unreliable transportation undermine hard-fought gains in production efficiency, according to U.S. manufacturing executives.
The giant wholesaler that provides drinking water for half the California population has drained two-thirds of its stored supplies as the state contends with a punishing drought, officials said Monday.
Driving on deficient roads costs California motorists a total of $44 billion annually in the form of additional vehicle operating costs (VOC), congestion-related delays and traffic crashes.
California drivers pay a staggering $44 billion a year in extra car costs because of traffic jams that seemingly grow worse by the day, spreading potholes and outdated roads and bridges, according to a national highway advocacy group.
With each day, it seems, another accident illustrates the cost of deferred maintenance on public works, while offering a frustrating reminder to this cash-strained municipality of the daunting task it faces in dealing with the estimated $8.1 billion it would take to do the necessary repairs. The city’s total annual budget is about $26 billion.
Many cities and states are in the same rusty boat, having put off investing in bridges, wastewater systems, dams and other public works that need regular maintenance and upgrades. The American Society of Civil Engineers estimates the country would have to spend $3.6 trillion to get the nation’s infrastructure in decent working order by 2020.
The U.S. economy earlier this year recovered all the jobs lost during the recession, but those new jobs pay an average of 23% less than the ones lost in the downturn, according to an analysis released Monday by the U.S. Conference of Mayors.
Officials have long known that hundreds of miles of city water lines have deteriorated and need replacement, with many past the century mark. But in recent years, L.A.’s elected leaders have been unwilling to hike water rates enough to fix them more rapidly. As it stands, the city-owned Department of Water and Power is on track to replace main water lines only once every 300 years.
Nearly 80% of the state was under “extreme” drought conditions in June, according to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor map. Within that area, the amount considered to be in the highest category of drought — “exceptional” — grew from 33% in May to 36%.
“Exceptional” drought conditions have spread in Central California since a week ago, weather officials said. Areas in Northern California have also moved into this category since last week, according to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
Highways have slipped below the political radar, even though Californians rack up more than 300 billion miles of automotive travel each year and even though the highways suffer from severe deficiencies that would, the California Transportation Commission says, cost $700 billion over the next decade to erase, several times what current revenue would produce.
A seismic expansion joint on the westbound Carquinez Bridge – similar to a dozen used on the skyway portion of the new Bay Bridge eastern span – has cracked after less than 10 years of pounding by heavy trucks, Caltrans officials said Wednesday.
That’s according to the results of a new poll released today showing that 79 percent of residents believe the region is facing dire straits regarding home prices. And more than 7 of 10 people surveyed said the region’s traffic congestion is a catastrophe.
Without quick action by Congress, the U.S. Transportation Department may begin scaling back or halting work on thousands of roads, bridges and other infrastructure projects at the height of the construction season this July, when the nation’s Highway Trust Fund is expected to run dry.
The decisions made in all of the areas discussed in this analysis could result in changes to the six states’ demographics and economy, both initially and over time. For example, differing policies could result in migration or different settlement patterns initially. Over the longer term, the states’ economic development and other policies could alter their respective economies. The exact nature of these changes, both initially and over time, is unknown.