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Newsline Washington
NOVEMBER 19, 2012
Nov.30 Webinar: 2013MarketForecast &50-StateOutlook ARTBA Chief Economist Dr. Alison Premo Black and ARTBA Senior Vice President of Government Relations Dave Bauer will provide a “behind the scenes” look at the political and economic factors that will shape the transportation design and construction market in 2013 during a 90-minute webinar on November 30. It begins at 12:00 p.m., Eastern.
Senate EPW Committee Moves on Water Resources Development Act
Among the topics covered: • National 2013 U.S. transportation construction market forecast; • Modal forecasts: highway, bridge, airport runway, transit, freight rail and ports/waterway markets; Continued on page 2
Infrastructure MakesNTSB’s “Most WantedList” The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) November 14 released its 2013 “Most Wanted,” an annual list of top advocacy priorities, which the federal agency uses to increase support for programs and policy changes it believes will reduce transportation accidents and Continued on page 4 Follow ARTBA:
Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) November 15 gaveled in the committee’s first hearing of the lame duck session of Congress to look at reauthorization of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA). A draft version of the proposed legislation would authorize 18 projects across the Army Corps of Engineers’ primary mission areas, including flood risk, storm
damage reduction, waterway and port navigation, and ecosystem restoration. The bill also calls for developing a new Levee Safety Program to catalog the nation’s inventory of levees and identify conditions and associated risks of levee failures. The proposal also includes an ARTBAsupported requirement to invest all annual revenues in the Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund to improve operation and maintenance of the nation’s
ports and increase investment in port construction, rather than allow the trust fund to build up unspent balances. Finally, the bill would establish a pilot Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program built off the successful loan program currently in use at the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). ARTBA will continue to work for passage of the overdue WRDA bill.
The next issue of the “Washington Newsline” will be published December 3. ARTBA Washington Newsline
Nov. 30 Webinar
Value of Transportation Construction Put in Place September (in billions)
Continued from page 1
•
New Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act’s and whether it will help fuel growth; • States poised for market growth and ones that will be flat; • Potential market impacts of Hurricane Sandy-related infrastructure recovery projects; • 2012 election results and what they could mean for the 2013 congressional transportation legislative agenda; and • How the “fiscal cliff’ could impact market conditions. This webinar will be particularly valuable for industry analysts, investors and construction executives. Paid participants will receive a comprehensive 55-page analysis containing ARTBA’s 2013 national forecast and stateby-state market outlook. Bauer and Black will also take questions. The cost is $300 for ARTBA members and $425 for non-members. Register at www.artbastore.com, or contact ARTBA’s Brie Johnson.
$18 $16 $14
$12.5 $12.6 $11.1
$12
$12.0 $12.0
$13.1 $13.5
$14.5 $14.5 $12.7 $12.5
$10 $8 $6 $4 $2 $0 2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
Source: U.S. Census Bureau
The transportation construction market weakened a bit in September, as the value of construction work put in place on transportation and transportation-related projects fell 1.3 percent from $12.7 billion in September 2011 to $12.5 billion in September 2012. As a result, the year-to-date growth rate slipped to 3.1 percent in September, down a bit from the 3.9 percent increase in year-to-date growth registered in August.
Upcoming Events
2012-13
Visit our Events Page for more information. Western Regional Meeting November 27-28 San Francisco, Calif. [Add to Calendar]
Central Regional Meeting November 29-30 Chicago, Ill. [Add to Calendar]
Southern Regional Meeting December 3-4 Atlanta, Ga. [Add to Calendar]
Northeastern Regional Meeting December 5-6 Boston, Mass. [Add to Calendar]
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ART BA Washington Newsline
2012
2013 Project Management Academy February 4-6 Washington, D.C. [Add to Calendar]
P6 Scheduling Academy February 6-8 Washington, D.C. [Add to Calendar]
Federal Issues Program & TCC Fly-In June 3-5 Washington, D.C. [Add to Calendar]
25th Annual ARTBA P3 Conference July 25-26 Washington, D.C. [Add to Calendar]
ARTBA National Convention September 8-10 Milwaukee, Wisc. [Add to Calendar]
Project Management & P6 Scheduling Academies Slated for Early-February ARTBA’s annual Project Management and P6 Scheduling Academies will be held February 4-6 and February 6-8 respectively at the ARTBA Headquarters in Washington, D.C. The Project Management Academy (PMA) provides transportation construction professionals with the next generation of tools and skills in seven core subjects of project management: construction documentation; resource management; planning and scheduling; safety; industry ethics; client relations; and management and leadership. The P6 Scheduling Academy will introduce attendees to Primavera Project
Planner (P6®) software and other tools that allow project managers to efficiently track key aspects of transportation projects, such as people, materials, operational benchmarks and payment schedules. Registration for the PMA is $2,299 for ARTBA members and $2,499 for nonmembers, and registration for the P6 Scheduling Academy is $1,795 for ARTBA members and $1,999 for non-members. Register for both and receive over $1,000 discount. Contact ARTBA’s Holly DiGangi for more information.
ARTBA Headquarters in Washington, D.C.
ARTBA Rolls Out Traffic Control Manual for Mobile Devices www.artbastore.org
Products & Services Join the growing ranks of companies like HCSS Industries that are advertising in ARTBA’s digital Buyers’ Guide.
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ARTBA launched the first-ever iBook
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Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), one
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their smart phones or tablets on the job
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print, and save both text and graphics by
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navigating hyperlinks and bookmarking
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and installation methods that should be used.
HCSS specializes in construction software. Since 1986, we’ve been helping infrastructure contractors streamline their operations through software for estimating, equipment maintenance, safety management, GPS solutions and more. Contact ARTBA Director of Sales Peter Embrey at 202.289.4434 to become part of the 2013 guide. ARTBA Washington Newsline
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Overheard “The thing with safety and infrastructure is that people don’t really think about it having a seat at the table until something catastrophic happens. We’ve got to make sure that safety is a part of the dialogue. When you think about how long some of these assets are around, we may think they’re going to be around 10, 20, 30 years, but in reality they’re around 50 to maybe 100 years.” National Transportation Safety Board Chair Debbie Hersman Nov. 14 in announcing the agency’s “Most Wanted List” of safety concerns. “In a November 2011 letter to the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction (the ‘Supercommittee’) AAA underscored the role that sound transportation funding policies can play in improving the nation’s fiscal and long-term economic situation. When we wrote the Supercommittee, the Highway Trust Fund was facing nearterm insolvency. Thankfully, MAP-21 helped save the program from falling off its own imminent fiscal cliff. But two years from now we will be facing a similar situation. While MAP-21 helped ease the pain, it did not provide an ultimate cure.” Robert L. Darbelnet, president and CEO of AAA in a Nov. 13 “National Journal” blog post.
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ART BA Washington Newsline
Legislative & Regulatory News NTSB’s “Most Wanted List” Continued from page 1
fatalities. Infastructure was among the 10 areas identified for improvements. The NTSB noted that “Infrastructure requires regular maintenance and when necessary, repair or replacement,” and plans to call on public officials to “invest, maintain, and allocate appropriate resources to preserve our transportation infrastructure.” Other categories included in the list: airport surface operations; bus safety; distracted driving; fire safety; general aviation safety; pipeline safety; positive train control; impaired driving; and collision avoidance. ARTBA will work with the NTSB in the coming months to draw attention to the need for greater investment in transportation infrastructure. View the full list.
GAO Recommends National Freight Plan for Waterways Investment A November 13 U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report finds the nation’s Marine Transportation System (MTS) suffers from neglected and aging infrastructure, a growing backlog of projects and a missing systemwide priority strategy. The report notes a number of the nation’s canal locks are over 100 years old, and their continued deterioration has led to conditions which impact their performance and result in costly delays to waterway
users. GAO identified two developments that provide opportunities to improve the MTS. First, MAP-21 requires the U.S. Department of Transportation to develop a National Freight Strategic Plan and to consult with appropriate transportation stakeholders. Whereas the DOT and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have historically limited coordination, the report suggests involving the Corps in the plan because of the important role navigable waterways play in goods movement. Second, the report recommends the Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS)—a partnership of federal agencies chaired by U.S. DOT—should take further action to help ensure its 2008 National Strategy for the Marine Transportation System is reviewed and updated to reflect new and emerging challenges, and that its 34 recommendations to improve the MTS are implemented. One key recommendation included studying approaches to allocate federal dollars among competing transportation
priorities. ARTBA remains engaged with all stakeholders to improve the nation’s ports and waterways systems and the reauthorization of the Water Resources Development Act. To that end, ARTBA October 24 signed an agreement with the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) to work together to jointly lobby on Congress on pending legislation that impacts ports and waterways. For more information on ARTBA’s Ports and Waterways Council and the partnership with AAPA, please contact Kenyon Gleason. View the report.
Group Acts On ARTBASupported Bridge Streamlining Proposal ARTBA applauded a November 16 decision by the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) to implement a proposal from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to reduce delays for bridge repair and restoration projects. FHWA’s new rule seeks to streamline the historic preservation process for bridges built after 1945 by allowing
Multimodal News
Fostering Innovation
A service of ARTBA’s multimodal councils, it features current transportation developments making news across all modes and regions. Contact Sara Jones to become a subscriber or visit www.artbamultimodal.org.
TRB Newsletter: Nov. 13
Highlighting new research, technologies, industry best practices and information resources available to the transportation design and construction industry.
those bridges to go through regulatory reviews as a group, rather than individually. ARTBA supported this approach in an October 1 letter, noting the approach is similar to how the FHWA dealt with historic preservation and the Interstate Highway System under the 2005 surface transportation reauthorization law. FHWA estimates the new rule will save taxpayers $78 million and effect reviews of more than 196,000 bridges. ARTBA’s original comments can be found on the regulatory section of www. artba.org.
transponder can elect to use the lanes for free if their vehicle has three or more passengers—the new device features a sliding switch that will signal the toll gantries when a vehicle is in HOV mode. Over 500 people attended a November 13 opening ceremony including Federal Highway Administrator Victor Mendez, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell (R) and U.S. Representative Gerry Connolly (D-Va.). Mendez congratulated the team and told the audience, “We’re going to see more P3s for major projects like this one here today,” and that his agency is not wasting any time putting the MAP-21 historic expansion of the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and P3 Capital Beltway Express Innovation Act Program into play. Governor McDonnell Lanes Open highlighted the long history of the project, which started when A 14-mile stretch of new now-Senator Mark Warner (Dexpress lanes on the Capital Va.) was governor and noted it Beltway in Northern Virginia as a bipartisan success. He told opened November 17 in an attendees, which included many effort to provide much needed state legislators, “We’re just relief to some of the nation’s getting started. I’m going to most heavily congested areas. The project is a $1.9 billion, 75- ask you to do things this session year public-private partnership to address our maintenance deficit.” Connolly said he hoped (P3) between the Virginia some of his colleagues would Department of Transportation hear the bipartisan message and Transurban USA-Fluor that adds four new variable toll that infrastructure investment grows the economy. express lanes in the median The private sector partners of existing free lanes. Lane have also been chosen to Construction Corporation was develop similar lanes on a also responsible for refurbishing section of Interstate 95 just or, in many cases, rebuilding south of the nation’s Capital. existing infrastructure— Learn about the Express Lanes. including 58 new bridges and overpasses, bicycle and pedestrian access, and 80,000 new linear feet of sound wall. The new lanes will feature adjustable toll rates to maintain a speed of 45 miles per hour and users with a new EZ-PASS Flex
Industry News
ARTBA RegionalMeetings NOVEMBER&DECEMBER 2012 Western Meeting November 27-28 Hyatt at Fisherman’s Wharf, San Franciso, Calif.
Central Meeting November 29-30 Hyatt Rosemont O’Hare Airport, Chicago, Ill.
Southern Meeting December 3-4 Hilton Atlanta Airport Hotel, Atlanta, Ga.
Northeastern Meeting December 5-6 Seaport Hotel, Boston, Mass.
Download a PDF copy of the digital “Washington Newsline.” ARTBA Washington Newsline
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“The following op-ed by ARTBA President & CEO, Pete Ruane appeared today in the Capitol Hill newspaper, “Politico.”
Harden U.S. infrastructure before it’s too late November 19, 2012
It shouldn’t take a tragic disaster to convince Americans that the nation’s physical infrastructure is vitally important to their wellbeing. Yet sadly, the Mid-Atlantic region lacked the solid infrastructure that it needed — including storm barriers, buried power lines, and waterproofed train stations. And so now Hurricane Sandy has killed more than 100 people and caused tens of billions of dollars in damage. According to the best-selling author Nassim Nicholas Taleb, a “black swan” is one of those unfortunate events that you never see coming — until it’s too late. Well, by now we should realize that black swans, somewhere, are a regular feature of life. So Americans need to start thinking more seriously about preparing for the inevitable. Seven years ago, Hurricane Katrina killed more than 1,800 people and caused $108 billion in damage along the Gulf Coast. Since then, the city of New Orleans has gained the better sea walls that it needed. It also rebuilt the Twin Span bridges from New Orleans to Slidell 20 feet higher, with a 100-year lifespan, and more hurricane-resistant than its predecessor. In short, the city will be a safer place when the next storm hits. Yet deadly weather is not the only kind of black swan. Five years ago, the I-35 bridge in Minneapolis collapsed, killing 13 and injuring 145. No freakish weather was involved; yet the loss of life and estimated $60 million toll on the Minnesota economy were immense. Today, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation, nearly 143,000 bridges are in need of repair or upgrade. So where will the next black-swan bridge disaster occur? In June 2012, a freak thunderstorm known as a “derecho” knocked out power for more than a million people in the Washington, D.C., area. The storm was a black swan, but its impact had been completely predictable; D.C.’s power grid was substantially above ground, and thus vulnerable to a weather strike. A hallmark of a successful civilization is its resilience in the face of disaster—and that means planning for those inevitable black swans. Two thousand years ago, the Romans started building sea walls. Ever since, such walls and gates have proved necessary for coastal cities all across Europe. In Japan, some 40 percent of Japan’s coastline is protected. Here in the U.S., Providence, R.I. — a city a fraction the size of New York — has been protected by a 3,000-foot storm barrier since 1966. In other words, the engineering wisdom of such protections for low-lying areas is well established. So the question is really about willingness — the willingness to confront reality, willingness to pay. How much would it cost, for example, to protect New York City from the next storm surge? The price tag would undoubtedly be in the billions, but the expense must be measured against the cost of the present-day damage to the local economy, as well as to the city’s reputation as a robust and reliable place to live and do business. Which is to say, the cost of “hardening” New York City’s infrastructure would be a bargain. And the same holds true for the rest of the Atlantic Coast. But, in recent decades, it’s become trendy to assert that infrastructure doesn’t really matter, because the current information economy means that “smart” systems will allow the digital to transcend the physical. Well, the answer to that can be summed up in two words: “Hurricane Sandy.” Thus, we come back to the basics of infrastructure. The Washington Post wrote last week: “The job now is not simply to pump water out of inundated subway lines. It is also to figure out how to harden the United States’ vital coastal infrastructure.” And of course, the same holds true for needed projects all over the country. Some might wonder: What about that $800 billion stimulus package that was enacted in 2009? Wasn’t that supposed to solve problems such as this? The answer is depressingly simple: Just six percent of that money went for transportation infrastructure, and states cut their own transportation spending by almost an equivalent amount. It is indeed unfortunate that we haven’t had more of a debate these past four years-a debate over the physical plant of our nation, over the facilities we all rely on for our health and wealth. But now Hurricane Sandy has put the infrastructure issue front and center on the national agenda. We have to start thinking ahead. The Chinese have a saying: “Dig the well before you get thirsty.” Today, we can say: “Build the storm barrier before the next storm.” “Fix the bridge before it collapses.” “Bury the power lines before they fall down.” It’s really not that complicated. It takes political will and foresight. Absent that, we just have to remember that the next black swan is likely not that far away.