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$50 Billion for Infrastructure Good Start, But Not Enough, Expert Says

"All of the various components of our infrastructure are in serious need of attention and should be given priority, even in times of fiscal belt-tightening," says Henry Petroski.

Henry Petroski is the Aleksandar S Vesic Professor of Civil Engineering at Duke University. He is an expert on the history of engineering and technology, and the author of several books, including "The Essential Engineer: Why Science Alone Will Not Solve Our Global Problems" (2010); "Success through Failure: The Paradox of Design" (2006); and "Pushing the Limits: New Adventures in Engineering (2005).

Petroski recently published an op-ed on the need to address the country's crumbling infrastructure, http://chronicle.com/article/Declining-Infrastructure-D/124137/

Quote:"President Obama's call for spending $50 billion on America's transportation infrastructure is good news, but the amount is far from the $2.2 trillion that the American Society of Civil Engineers has estimated it would cost to bring the nation's total infrastructure up from the poor grade of D that it received in 2009 to a level that would enable the country to remain strong and prosperous.

"It is not only our roads, railways and airports that are in serious need of repair and renewal. As recent events have demonstrated, the aging water and gas lines buried beneath our streets can break without notice and give rise to flooding, fire, destruction and death. All of the various components of our infrastructure are in serious need of attention and should be given priority, even in times of fiscal belt-tightening. What we do not maintain today will surely cost much more to repair in the future."