With the presidential just months away, one of the hottest topics will be infrastructure.
Look at U.S. bridges, for example.
Shortly after the Baltimore bridge collapse, we were reminded that another 42,000 bridges are in poor condition – even as 167 million vehicles pass over them every day, says the Associated Press. Unfortunately, it’s not just our bridges in need of desperate repair.
According to the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), which graded U.S. infrastructure with a C-, about 43% of our public roadways are in poor condition. There’s a water main break every two minutes, leading to the loss of about six billion gallons of water every day.
But that’s not the worst part.
Not only are we barely passing with a C-, we need $4.6 trillion worth of upgrades to just about everything. We need to fix just about everything, even the water supply.
Consider this, for example.
The U.S. needs $1.27 trillion over the next two decades to meet the growing demands for wastewater and safe drinking water. At the moment, the U.S. alone consumes 42 billion gallons of treated drinking water every day. Yet, six billion gallons are lost because of leaking pipes.
Worse, according to the ASCE:
The cost of deteriorating infrastructure takes a toll on families’ disposable household income and impacts the quality and quantity of jobs in the U.S. economy…. From 2016 to 2025, each household will lose $3,400 each year in disposable income due to infrastructure deficiencies
On top of that, a lack of progress in infrastructure repairs could cost U.S. GDP $3.9 trillion by 2025. Businesses could lose $7 trillion by 2025. More than 2.5 million jobs could be lost. All thanks to poor roads and airports, an aging electrical grid, and higher costs for businesses, which are passed to families and workers.
One way to trade the news is with Vulcan Materials (VMC), the company produces and sells construction aggregates, asphalt mix, and ready-mixed concrete primarily in the United States. All of which is required to upgrade ailing infrastructure.
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