As a new administration assumes power in Washington, many activities and initiatives will be undertaken to address our nation’s financial crisis and, just as importantly, the global economic downturn. Amid all the emergency loans, stimulus programs and international negotiations, our leaders must not neglect the vital asset that is our nation’s transportation infrastructure.
As important as strong banks and financial institutions are to our nation, so too are modern, well-maintained roads, highways, bridges and rail connections. The efficient movement of goods through our ports, over our highways and cross-country via rail is just as critical to our economic recovery as the availability of loans, the bolstering of our manufacturing industries, and other essential components of our economy. Washington must do all it can to ensure that the dislocation and decline of trade due to the current crisis is only temporary, and including substantial infrastructure improvements to our economic recovery plan will go a long way in accomplishing this.
Addressing infrastructure concerns also will deliver a vital short-term gain, as thousands of Americans will immediately be put to work in making needed improvements. Further, while it is understandable that the incoming executive branch and new Congress would be sympathetic to the concept of “make work” initiatives to get ordinary Americans and the U.S. economy back on their feet, undertaking enhancements and upgrades to our transportation infrastructure will provide the significant level of work needed to make a difference, but with little or none of the attendant criticism such spending often engenders.
Ports are our gateways to the world and welcoming stations when the world comes to us. Ports rely heavily on their surrounding infrastructure, as does every U.S. city and community, and it’s our nation’s infrastructure that needs us to argue for it at this moment in history, and with more fanfare than ever before.