Aging America: Roads and Bridges

     America's roads and bridges are in bad shape, our arteries and veins are clogging up with a volume of traffic that was never dreamed of. Roads are crumbling, cracking, and falling apart. Bridges are rusting, straining under the weight of cars and trucks, and slowly dying. 20-30 years ago, America's transportation network was the envy of every nation across the world, now, many see it as a system that is slowly tying down the nation's advancement into the future.
     As a driver and a passenger, I think that I can speak for most drivers when it comes to this. All of us have driven on crappy roads before, they're not fun. Every time we go over a rough surface we have this feeling that our cars are going to break. However, it seems like these roads are never fixed either, why? For many reasons, the delays it will cause, the money needed, and the necessity of replacing the road. If a road were in bad condition and it was a main artery whom many rely on for their daily commute to work or home, the task of replacing the road will be a logistical nightmare as planners will have to reroute all traffic while trying to reduce delays. As with everything else in this world, there's a price tag attached. Money is needed to replace these roads and in our current economic turmoil, money is hard to find. One solution is to tax people and businesses in order to pay for construction costs, but that plan will inadvertently cause controversy and anger. However, if people are willing to donate money to help pay for part or all of the construction costs, then we can avoid unnecessary delays that will further drive up the cost. An effective campaign with door to door and town hall meetings will inform people on exactly where their money will go if they decide to give some. By doing this, we will get rid of suspicion and help ease the mind of some who think that the money will go into the pockets of other instead of the road. If not enough donations are obtained then taxes will be the only option, however, in order to keep everybody happy, people who have donated will be compensated with lighter tax increases.
     Keeping traffic from backing up and causing delays and unhappy drivers will be a huge hurdle to overcome. Since many of these roads are main arteries, secondary roads can't handle the expected volume of traffic. The best way is to give advance notice of somewhere between one to two months so that people who need to travel on those roads are informed well ahead of the construction day. Being informed allows people to find other routes or make arrangements to reduce their amount of travelling. Unfortunately, any construction on roads or bridges will cause delay no matter how much careful planning is put in place.
     Roads and bridges are repaired based on their need for repair due to tight budgets. If there's a bad road or bridge that you see, keep in mind that there will always be worse. As Qui-Gon Jinn says, "There's always a bigger fish." This system has its flaws though as many bridge that are in dire need of repair are left to crumble even more because some other bridge or road is in an even worse state.
     These problems can be solved by replacing bridges when possible that use better materials that can last longer and be just as strong. Plastics can be used as part of the main structure that supports the roadway if it was blended with rebar. Similar to pouring concrete over rebar, pouring melted plastic over rebar and allowing it to solidify would allow for strength and extreme durability since plastic does not break down over time like concrete. For bridges that are under capacity, building new ones next to old ones can help increase the volume of traffic that is capable of traveling over it but creates the need for wider road or highways. However, another solution is possible and will be discussed in a later post. Roads that are in bad condition will have to be repaved with the latest in asphalt technology to ensure durability. We could borrow ideas from the German Autobahn which is, in my opinion, the pinnacle in road design. They invest heavily in their road infrastructure allowing it to be the safest and fastest in the world.
     America needs its roads and bridges to survive, they are the arteries of our country and the locations they serve are either organs or cells. If our arteries are clogged, our organs and cells will begin to die and the whole system will fall apart.