Americas Infrastructure

Author : Henry Petroski
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN 13 : 1632863626
Total Pages : 337 pages
Book Rating : 4.21/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Road Taken written by Henry Petroski and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2017-02-21 with total page 337 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A renowned historian and engineer explores the past, present, and future of America's crumbling infrastructure. Acclaimed engineer and historian Henry Petroski explores our core infrastructure from both historical and contemporary perspectives, explaining how essential their maintenance is to America's economic health. Petroski reveals the genesis of the many parts of America's highway system--our interstate numbering system, the centerline that divides roads, and such taken-for-granted objects as guardrails, stop signs, and traffic lights--all crucial to our national and local infrastructure. A compelling work of history, The Road Taken is also an urgent clarion call aimed at American citizens, politicians, and anyone with a vested interest in our economic well-being. Physical infrastructure in the United States is crumbling, and Petroski reveals the complex and challenging interplay between government and industry inherent in major infrastructure improvement. The road we take in the next decade toward rebuilding our aging infrastructure will in large part determine our future national prosperity.

Author : Robert W. Poole
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 022655760X
Total Pages : 376 pages
Book Rating : 4.01/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Rethinking America's Highways written by Robert W. Poole and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2018-08-03 with total page 376 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A transportation expert makes a provocative case for changing the nation’s approach to highways, offering “bold, innovative thinking on infrastructure” (Rick Geddes, Cornell University). Americans spend hours every day sitting in traffic. And the roads they idle on are often rough and potholed, with exits, tunnels, guardrails, and bridges in terrible disrepair. According to transportation expert Robert Poole, this congestion and deterioration are outcomes of the way America manages its highways. Our twentieth-century model overly politicizes highway investment decisions, short-changing maintenance and often investing in projects whose costs exceed their benefits. In Rethinking America’s Highways, Poole examines how our current model of state-owned highways came about and why it is failing to satisfy its customers. He argues for a new model that treats highways themselves as public utilities—like electricity, telephones, and water supply. If highways were provided commercially, Poole argues, people would pay for highways based on how much they used, and the companies would issue revenue bonds to invest in facilities people were willing to pay for. Arguing for highway investments to be motivated by economic rather than political factors, this book makes a carefully-reasoned and well-documented case for a new approach to highways.

Author : Lisa Idzikowski
Publisher : Greenhaven Publishing LLC
ISBN 13 : 1534504435
Total Pages : 130 pages
Book Rating : 4.31/5 ( download)

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Download or read book America's Infrastructure written by Lisa Idzikowski and published by Greenhaven Publishing LLC. This book was released on 2018-12-15 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Engineers argue that inadequate maintenance of roads, bridges, airports, waterways, and other critical aspects of infrastructure along with underinvestment have created an infrastructure crisis in the United States. Many politicians agree with this claim and are attempting to take action. However, we are faced with the issue of which projects are most essential and how to fund them. Is the state of America's infrastructure that dire compared to the rest of the world? Are these efforts to improve it a cynical ploy from politicians to gain attention and ensure reelection? This volume considers the many perspectives of this pressing issue.

Author : United States. Congress. House. Committee on Public Works and Transportation. Subcommittee on Economic Development
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 594 pages
Book Rating : 4.60/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Investing in America's Infrastructure written by United States. Congress. House. Committee on Public Works and Transportation. Subcommittee on Economic Development and published by . This book was released on 1993 with total page 594 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Author : Edward L. Glaeser
Publisher : University of Chicago Press
ISBN 13 : 022680058X
Total Pages : 479 pages
Book Rating : 4.85/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Economic Analysis and Infrastructure Investment written by Edward L. Glaeser and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 2021-11-11 with total page 479 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Policy-makers often call for expanding public spending on infrastructure, which includes a broad range of investments from roads and bridges to digital networks that will expand access to high-speed broadband. Some point to near-term macro-economic benefits and job creation, others focus on long-term effects on productivity and economic growth. This volume explores the links between infrastructure spending and economic outcomes, as well as key economic issues in the funding and management of infrastructure projects. It draws together research studies that describe the short-run stimulus effects of infrastructure spending, develop new estimates of the stock of U.S. infrastructure capital, and explore the incentive aspects of public-private partnerships (PPPs). A salient issue is the treatment of risk in evaluating publicly-funded infrastructure projects and in connection with PPPs. The goal of the volume is to provide a reference for researchers seeking to expand research on infrastructure issues, and for policy-makers tasked with determining the appropriate level of infrastructure spending"--

Author : Mason Willrich
Publisher : MIT Press
ISBN 13 : 0262036797
Total Pages : 321 pages
Book Rating : 4.95/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Modernizing America's Electricity Infrastructure written by Mason Willrich and published by MIT Press. This book was released on 2017-10-13 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A comprehensive, coherent strategy for modernizing America's electricity infrastructure while ensuring affordable, reliable, secure, and environmentally sustainable electricity services. America's aging electricity infrastructure is deteriorating rapidly even as the need for highly reliable electric service—driven by the explosion of digital technology—continues to rise. Largely missing from national discussions, however, is a coherent, comprehensive national strategy for modernizing this critical infrastructure. Energy expert Mason Willrich presents just such a strategy in this book, connecting the dots across electric utilities, independent suppliers, government bureaucracies, political jurisdictions, and academic disciplines. He explains the need for a coherent approach, offers a framework for analyzing policy options, and proposes a step-by-step strategy for modernizing electrical infrastructure, end-to-end, in a way that ensures the delivery of affordable, reliable, secure, and environmentally sustainable electricity services. Willrich argues that an effective electrical infrastructure modernization strategy must incorporate flexibility, adaptability, and the capacity to coordinate policies at local, state, and federal levels. He reviews the history of America's electrification, from Edison's demonstration of the incandescent light bulb through the recent expansion of wind, solar, and energy efficiency as carbon-free energy resources. He describes the current ownership and operation of the electric industry and the complicated web of federal and state policies that govern it.

Author : Lisa Idzikowski
Publisher : Greenhaven Publishing LLC
ISBN 13 : 1534504095
Total Pages : 128 pages
Book Rating : 4.97/5 ( download)

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Download or read book America's Infrastructure written by Lisa Idzikowski and published by Greenhaven Publishing LLC. This book was released on 2018-12-15 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Engineers argue that inadequate maintenance of roads, bridges, airports, waterways, and other critical aspects of infrastructure along with underinvestment have created an infrastructure crisis in the United States. Many politicians agree with this claim and are attempting to take action. However, we are faced with the issue of which projects are most essential and how to fund them. Is the state of America's infrastructure that dire compared to the rest of the world? Are these efforts to improve it a cynical ploy from politicians to gain attention and ensure reelection? This volume considers the many perspectives of this pressing issue.

Author : R. Richard Geddes
Publisher : Government Institutes
ISBN 13 : 0844743461
Total Pages : 205 pages
Book Rating : 4.62/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Road to Renewal written by R. Richard Geddes and published by Government Institutes. This book was released on 2011 with total page 205 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "In The Road to Renewal: Private Investment in U.S. Transportation Infrastructure, R. Richard Geddes surveys the current state of the American transportation system and finds that, like the roads themselves, the existing policy approach is in desperate need of repair. Drawing on the basic economic principles behind supply, demand, competition, and incentives, Geddes argues that a shift toward increased use of public-private partnerships (PPPs)--contractual agreements between public agencies and private parties that allow private participation in the design, construction, operation, and delivery of transportation facilities--could significantly improve the quality of America's transportation infrastructure. By learning to see themselves as customers and investors--rather than mere users--of roads and highways, Americans should expect to receive a reasonable return on their investment: thorough, effective maintenance of America's transportation infrastructure. The Road to Renewal shows how incorporating increased private participation can halt the deterioration of America's transportation system and become the foundation for a safer, more efficient transportation future."--P. [4] of cover.

Author : Adjo A. Amekudzi
Publisher : Amer Society of Civil Engineers
ISBN 13 : 9780784409589
Total Pages : 188 pages
Book Rating : 4.87/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Infrastructure Reporting and Asset Management written by Adjo A. Amekudzi and published by Amer Society of Civil Engineers. This book was released on 2008 with total page 188 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report contains 25 papers describing current approaches to asset management and highlighting the importance of and best practices in infrastructure reporting.

Author : Pat Choate
Publisher : Durham, N.C. : Duke Press Paperbacks
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 130 pages
Book Rating : 4.41/5 ( download)

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Download or read book America in Ruins written by Pat Choate and published by Durham, N.C. : Duke Press Paperbacks. This book was released on 1983 with total page 130 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: