United States Senators Tender

U.S. Sens. Jim Inhofe R-Okla. Sherrod Brown D-Ohio Sheldon Whitehouse D-R.I. Roger Wicker R-Miss. Ron Wyden D-Ore. Rob Portman R-Ohio Chris Van Hollen D-Md. John Boozman R-Ark. Ed Markey D-Mass. Cindy Hyde-Smith R-Miss. Debbie Stabenow D-Mich. Bill Hagerty R-Tenn. Patty Murray D-Wash. and Bob Casey D-Pa. introduced their bipartisan Bridge Investment Act ahead of the Environment and Public Works EPW Committee highway markup this week. This bill would establish a competitive grant program to assist the repair and replacement of deficient and outdated bridges and ease the national bridge repair backlog. The EPW Committee will vote on this legislation tomorrow and it is then expected to be included in a larger surface transportation bill considered on the Senate floor. These Senators previously introduced this legislation in 2019.Oklahomans are well aware of the need to invest in bridges said Inhofe. Our state used to be one of the worst states for having a high number of structurally deficient bridges but because of my work in SAFETEA-LU MAP-21 and the FAST Act Oklahoma received the federal resources needed to make bridge repairs and replacement a priority. Today we are ninth in the nation for having the fewest number of structurally deficient highway system bridges. Now we cannot rest on our past success we need to continue to make improving our nations infrastructure a priority. Thats why I am glad to re-introduce the Bridge Investment Act alongside Sen. Brown and I will work to ensure its inclusion in the bipartisan Surface Transportation Reauthorization Act of 2021.Rebuilding bridges across the U.S. will create new jobs and make our country more competitive said Brown who serves as Chairman on the Senate Banking Housing and Urban Affairs Committee. Ohio has more than 3200 bridges that need to be repaired or replaced to make them safer and reduce congestion. But states and cities cant do it alone they need real investment to help fix these outdated bridges that clog up our roads and leave drivers at greater risk of an accident. This bipartisan program will help deliver a new Brent Spence and make travel safer across Ohio.The Ocean State has no shortage of bridges in serious need of repair or replacement said Whitehouse. Competing pressures on state and local budgets over decades have led to a massive national backlog of bridge projects. Our bipartisan Bridge Reinvestment Act will invest billions of dollars in bridge upgrades in Rhode Island and across the country making roads safer for drivers and creating good jobs in the process.Many of Mississippis bridges were built decades ago and are in need of major repairs. This problem also exists across the nation. The Bridge Investment Act would launch a competitive federal grant program specifically designed for bridges allowing states like Mississippi to access much-needed resources to complete these capital-intensive projects said Wicker who serves as ranking member of the Senate Commerce Science and Transportation Committee and is a member of the Environment and Public Works Committee.Oregonians strongly support investments in our crumbling infrastructure. With half of Oregons bridges being more than 50 years old our state is particularly vulnerable. Bridges allow goods to move to market and commuters to get to work and the Bridge Investment Act would provide a critical boost of funding to improve safety and promote economic growth said Wyden.Im pleased that the Bridge Investment Act will be included in the bipartisan transportation bill being considered by the Environment and Public Works Committee this week because this common-sense legislation will get us that much closer to a solution for the Brent Spence Bridge said Portman.The recent closure of the Interstate 40 bridge across the Mississippi River demonstrates the need to ensure states have the funding necessary to make structural improvements to critical infrastructure said Boozman. This legislation will allow targeted federal investments to make repairs to our aging bridges so we can prevent unexpected closures promote safety and support economic growth.Bridges across our country and particularly in Massachusetts are falling apart threatening the safety and security of people who rely on these arteries for evacuation routes commerce and transportation said Markey. We need to make a large investment in bridges to improve both the safety and efficiency of our infrastructure including critical evacuation routes such as the Sagamore and Bourne Bridges on Cape Cod. These two bridges connect the nearly 250000 people living on the Cape and Islands to the rest of Massachusetts and they are in desperate need of replacement. I am proud to join my colleagues in introducing this legislation today.Mississippi with nearly 6000 bridges faces the same challenges seen across the nation in terms of bridge disrepair said Hyde-Smith. Our proposed competitive federal grant program and other reforms would help states and communities overcome the public safety economic and quality of life challenges arising from aged and compromised bridges.Michigan knows the consequences of outdated and crumbling bridges said Stabenow. Our bipartisan bill invests in our bridges and addresses our backlog of critical maintenance meeting a need I hear about all the time from people in Michigan. This investment will give our state the tools to ensure our bridges are safe create jobs and encourage economic growth.