CRYING WOLF: THE FALSE "CRISIS" OF AMERICA'S CRUMBLING ROADS AND BRIDGES--AND WHY SPECIAL INTEREST HIGHWAY LOBBYISTS LIKE IT THAT WAY

A flurry of recent reports have warned of an impending crisis caused by a lack of investment in our nation's roads and bridges. The answer, of course, is that we must spend more money in order to maintain our infrastructure, even if that means increasing our national debt or eliminating funding for more local problems like mass transit and pedestrian safety. But a closer look at the numbers reveals that road and bridge conditions are actually improving nationwide. In addition, analysis contained within this report concludes that almost half of the money demanded by the highway lobby to repair existing infrastructure has actually been diverted to build new and bigger highways - creating vast future maintenance needs before we take care of those that already exist. This report recommends that Congress remedy the problem by enacting a Fix It First policy in the next federal transportation bill (ISTEA) to be considered in early 1997.