A new report found Michigan’s public infrastructure was showing its age.
The American Society of Civil Engineers handed out grades in several areas. And for our maintenance of that, we’re getting mere passing grades.
The American Society of Civil Engineers of Michigan said they could do much better and has some suggestions.
They put out a report Monday (May 8) offering assessments of what’s wrong and how to fix it.
Granted, Michigan is changing the grading system, but if your child came home with an overall average C- you’d probably say it’s time to hit the books or work to improve that score.
That C- score is based on a 130-page report, and a lot of it starts at I-75 and I-696.
“Michigan households withstand more than $1,000 per year in additional vehicle operating costs due to faulty road infrastructure,” said Brad Ewart of American Society of Civil Engineers Michigan Section.
C+ is the highest grade Michigan received, meaning just above mediocre or poor, a grade our solid waste infrastructure received.
We’re getting C’s or requiring more attention in aviation, inland waterways, public parks, rail, and wastewater.
We’re getting C-’s for our dams, schools, and transit. The engineers handed out D+ grades for our drinking water and & bridges.
Drone 4 showed the two biggest concerns, which were I-75 at I-696... Built-in 1971, and sees 200,000 vehicles a day, and I-75 at Fort Street in Detroit, which the state built in 1967, sees 110,000 vehicles daily.
Both are listed as structurally deficient.
Receiving a D grade means being poor and at risk. Our energy, stormwater, and roads all have those grades.
And with energy, we’ve all learned the hard way we’re slightly above the national average in weather-related outages, but it takes nearly 40% longer to fix the lines.
“The transmission and distribution network for our grid is aging beyond its designed life and will need to be addressed to prevent worsening outages, particularly as increasingly frequent severe weather events hit the region,” Ewart said.
Michigan is roughly in line with the national average, even with those grades.
The engineers say Michigan has actually improved slightly in some areas, like roads and schools where the legislature has been pouring money.
But they believe what’s needed more than anything is dedicated, long-term financing to make a significant impact, and many of the recommendations have to do with taxes and fees.
