Lack of Infrastructure Improvements could lead to Structural Collapses

Data compiled by investment research firm BCA Research reveals that over the last few years since 2010, federal infrastructure spending unrelated to defense has declined by around $60 billion from an average of about $300 billion per year. In contrast, the structural collapse injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC mention that the American Society of Civil Engineers says that federal infrastructure spending should be approximately $450 billion per year in order to get the U.S. infrastructure back up to a reasonably safe and workable level by 2020. (Sources: Alan Pyke, thinkprogress.org; and BCA Research investment research firm, 11/1/13)

Our structural collapse injury attorneys point out that a great many of America’s highways, bridges, and other essential transportation infrastructure elements were built in the era from the 1940s to the 1960s. Some of those structures are beginning to strongly show their age and accumulated weaknesses.

 

Engineers regularly inspect bridges, overpasses, and other essential structures to rank their safety and priority in terms of need for repairs. In recent years, that data has become ever more depressing, and government officials more reluctant to publish the data. The City of Los Angeles was in the news just last week struggling to obtain a report on which of the city’s aging concrete structures were most in danger of collapsing in the event of an earthquake. Authorities did not want to release the data. Given Los Angeles’ location in an area prone to earthquakes, that data is pretty relevant to urban planning there.

To keep the U.S. transportation infrastructure functional, the investments in improvements will eventually need to be made anyway. But there’s a good chance that if made later rather than sooner, costs will be higher. Our structural collapse injury attorneys caution that costs might be higher in terms of lives as well, if bridges and overpasses collapse suddenly in the meantime.

Democrats are suggesting that the creation of a national infrastructure bank with a $10 billion initial investment will provide an ongoing funding stream for infrastructure projects. The structural collapse injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC suggest you beware. Look before you leap off any fiscal cliffs.

What happens whenever you aggregate large sums of money in one place and give government officials access to those funds? They tend to loot those funds and waste the money in futile pursuits for which the funds were never intended. Some of you might recall back when the Clinton campaign and then Administration was going on about the sizable deficit (which has nothing on today’s deficit, by the way). And then the Clinton Administration suddenly announced that there was no longer a deficit but a substantial surplus….

Where did that surplus come from? Did Harry Potter wave his magic wand and just bring it into being? No (and seriously, why would he even do that for the colonies across the pond?), the Administration apparently looted the Social Security fund, which is now struggling. And many of us will never see a dime from our Social Security contributions in part due to that sudden, magic Administration surplus. So we’re just saying: think twice before you fall for any of these “one time initial investment” schemes. In our world, unlike Harry Potter’s, there just aren’t any magic solutions.