Infrastructure
It’s an ongoing, multitrillion-dollar challenge to build new and maintain existing infrastructure. This section will explore forward-looking approaches to funding, building and maintaining roads, highways, rail and broadband, as well as water and other utilities.
Through boot camps and training sessions, a group is helping smaller cities and towns with limited resources put together competitive grant applications. More mayors should take advantage of it.
Gov. Jeff Landry praised the state’s investment in coastal protection projects, such as levee infrastructure, as one reason why the Category 2 storm spared most of Louisiana from major destruction.
The bill states that Baltimore “shall be entitled to recover for economic loss” from the bridge collapse which stalled the city’s port activity, reallocated emergency services and impacted local workers. But some legal experts are skeptical.
Future in Context
Statewide cybersecurity initiatives, like whole-of-state programs, are offering essential support to smaller communities and agencies. Backed by federal funding, they aim to bridge resource gaps and strengthen defenses against cyber threats.
In 2023 the state created the Texas Energy Fund to finance about 10 gigawatts of electric generation capacity in hopes of reducing strain on the ERCOT power grid. Regulators approved 17 companies to receive loans if their projects are viable.
A bipartisan group of more than 350 mayors has committed to ambitious targets for fleet electrification and charging infrastructure.
If Eversource Energy, a New England energy provider, follows through with its plan to replace 49 miles of transmission lines in New Hampshire, Maine ratepayers may see changes to their monthly bills throughout the duration of the project.
A Florida startup has installed about 7,500 lights, at least half of which are in Tampa Bay neighborhoods, and estimates they have prevented around 2.6 million pounds of carbon emissions.
Each year, more trees fall in cities than are harvested from national forests, putting infrastructure at risk. Researchers estimate that urban trees could replace about 10 percent of the nation’s annual lumber consumption.
The continuing injustice of Flint should be a wakeup call. With billions flowing from Washington and millions of lead pipes still in place across the country, now is the time to establish access to clean water as a human right.
States can compensate with vehicle and odometer taxes, but local governments can harness new data technologies — including GPS, 5G and AI — to meet the need for more than states’ hand-me-down dollars.
Nationally, 83 percent of new solar projects developed by 2040 will be installed on farms and ranchland. But some believe that the two industries can exist side by side.
From buckling roads to twisted rails, it’s under a lot of stress. Engineers have some ideas for minimizing the problems.
Kansas and Missouri are spending millions of dollars in a bidding war to win over major sports teams. The fallout could be detrimental for the losing metro area.
Big money is flowing to cities and states from infrastructure laws backed by the Biden-Harris administration. This barely rates mention, even from Democrats.
As billions flow from Washington to extend fast and reliable Internet to underserved areas, policymakers should rely on the experienced, established providers that already know how to get this difficult job done.
Gov. Mike DeWine announced that businesses can now download the Ohio Mobile ID Check app, which enables them to accept ID cards via iPhones. However, physical cards are still needed for driving and interactions with police.
The money flowing from Washington can go a long way toward decarbonizing the buildings we live and work in. But it’s crucial to design the implementation of these projects to benefit everyone.
Data centers are popping up across the state as they get hundreds of millions in state and local tax breaks each year. But some experts worry that the facilities may soon overburden the available power supply.
Some locals of Stone Harbor, a wealthy Jersey Shore community in Cape May County, N.J., worry that the town’s parking app, ParkMobile, doesn’t always work and, as a result, is discouraging travelers from stopping.
Jonathan Daniels, an experienced crisis manager, is getting Baltimore’s port back in business.
Michigan’s Homeowners’ Energy Policy Act will take effect in October and will prevent HOAs from blocking the installation of a wide range of energy-efficient measures at their homes. Residents of mobile home communities might be next.
At the current pace of development, the number of public electric vehicle chargers across the nation will outnumber gas stations in about eight years. Many even expect charger momentum to increase, shortening the predicted timeline.
An estimated 9 million water service lines that still carry drinking water to homes and businesses are made of lead throughout the country. Yet an October deadline and a November election could delay replacement.
The proposal would increase property taxes to fund new sidewalks, bike lanes, and other transportation infrastructure. It would replace a $930 million levy expiring this year.
The water was being siphoned at the top of an old coal ash pond for reuse at the Boswell Energy Center in Cohasset, Minn., but escaped after an underground pipe broke. Experts say the risk is low to local drinking water.
Heavy rains on Tuesday threatened failure of the 89-year-old Nashville, Mo., City Reservoir Dam, forcing about 200 people to evacuate their homes. More rain is expected across the region.
The $935.4 million system upgrade will launch on Aug. 1, allowing riders on the Green Line and Mattapan Line trolleys to tap their credit/debit card, phone or watch to pay for fares.
As cars become more fuel efficient and EVs become more prominent, states will not be able to rely on gas taxes for much longer. But some states are considering fees on Amazon deliveries as part of their road-funding solution.
The lost water costs the cities millions and heightens the state’s water supply challenges.
Slow rollout of the federal program has frustrated lawmakers, especially those in Michigan, which received $110 million through fiscal year 2026 for EV expansion but has funded no new power stations.
