Bridges, Broadband, Water Mains — What to Fix
First?
This week, many Americans will hit the road to spend time
with family and friends. And when they get to their destinations,
they’ll be thankful for electricity, running water and
high-speed Internet service. But all of these systems in the United States are
overburden by use,
inattention,
congestion and lack of
funding. Which requires most urgent care: roads, bridges, power grids or something
else altogether? And what’s the best way to finance it?
* hit the road = 먼 길을 나서다, 여행 길에 오르다/ get to ~ =
~에 도착하다, 닿다; [어떤 결과]에 이르다/ running water = 유수, 수돗물/ overburden = 과중한 부담을 주다/
inattention = 부주의/ congestion = 혼잡/ power grid = 전력망/ finance = 자금[재원]을
대다
길, 다리, 전력망 그 외 어떤 것이 가장 긴급한 치료가 필요하며, 그 재원을 대는 최선의 방법은
무엇인가요?
1. Let States Finance and Maintain
Roads and Bridges
In the individual states, where
infrastructure problems are more immediate and practical needed action can and
has been taken in a timely manner.
2. Ways to
Address the Aging and Neglected Water Systems
Rialto, Calif.
and Bayonne, N.J. are representative of a new movement in American water
infrastructure investment.
3. Charge Drivers
a ‘Fee for Service’ Toll
The best idea is a toll that depends
on the road conditions and especially on congestion: The 3 a.m. driver pays
little; the 5 p.m. driver pays more.
4. Don’t
Forget About High-Speed Broadband
The U.S. needs to
encourage, not limit, broadband infrastructure, making it easier, faster and
more cost effective for all citizens to connect.
5. The Electric Power Grid Needs America’s
Attention
A siloed view of the power system must give way to
an understanding of interdependencies among the power sector and other critical
services.
Sample
Essay
Don’t Forget About
High-Speed Broadband
More than 80 percent of American
adults use the Internet, a number that will continue to increase alongside
consumer demand for broadband-enabled devices and applications. Given this
trend, the U.S. should expand its current definition of physical infrastructure
beyond local and national water mains, electrical grids, roads, bridges and
highways to include high-speed broadband. And, it’s imperative that broadband is
widely available to every citizen, regardless of who they are and where they
live.
However, treating high speed broadband as infrastructure is
complicated.
Several years ago, the Federal Communications Commission
recommended including easier access to poles, conduits, ducts, rights of way,
“dig once” legislation and the placement of communications infrastructure on
federal lands — all vital to more effective coordination between the public and
private sectors. Congress recently introduced bipartisan legislation to
facilitate alignment between federal agencies and private network providers to
include the installation of pipes carrying fiber-optic cables as part of
federally funded highway construction projects.
Generally, the private
sector has been critical in scaling and sustaining broadband networks, making
government incentives only part of the solution. Regulatory certainty is of
equal importance as industry works toward adequate returns on their investments.
Despite years of fluid investment in broadband infrastructure, some economists
argue that the F.C.C.’s recent reclassification of broadband Internet as a Title
II service, will see a corollary decline in the building and enhancing of
networks, despite increased government incentives.
President Obama has
outlined aggressive goals for wireless infrastructure, prompting immediate
actions to alleviate the current strains on this platform. Yet, without sound
legislation and public policies that incentivize the continued development of
robust broadband and the repurposing of federal spectrum from government to
commercial uses, wireless infrastructure will not evolve into a more sustainable
and reliable asset.
Going forward, we must support policies and
investments that encourage, not limit, broadband infrastructure investments. Our
nation builds roads and highways to make it easier for citizens to reach their
destinations without limited interruptions and costs. The same goals should be
applied to broadband to make it easier, faster, and more cost effective for all
citizens to connect.