Norman Anderson, president of the CG-LA, a Washington-DC based “infrastructure” consultancy group, is a man with a plan. Anderson believes the United States needs a new blueprint to get things rolling after years of critical infrastructure projects being stuck in the Beltway’s bureaucratic quagmire. To this end, Anderson’s group put together an intriguing glimpse into what could be a guide to re-shaping how projects get done in the US.
CG-LA, which annually publishes their “North America Strategic 100 Project List”, unveiled a program entitled “Blueprint 2025.” In an extensive interview with the American Journal of Transportation, Anderson said, “While I’m optimistic, we [the US] are in a world of pain in terms of infrastructure. It takes way too long to develop projects…9 ½ years just for permitting.”
According to Anderson, the problem is “while the CG-LA sees pent up demand, there’s no political will and not much political awareness” to get things going again. “Blueprint 2025-Innovation and Leadership is a initiative to design a robust infrastructure build for the next Administration and through the next two election cycles.”
A key point as said by Anderson is the US must learn how to prioritize infrastructure projects going forward (see 100 North American projects list) as “the old priorities, don’t make it – all highways, all the time.” (Highways and bridges and Urban Mass Transit account for $31.6 billion and $46.1 billion in the Top 100).
The concept behind the choice of the 100 projects is their “strategic” value to the nation. It is a holistic concept that will require more qualified people to administer the Plan and a radically new approach to funding. As Anderson points out the Obama administration may talk about infrastructure projects as if there is someone or an institution in place, but the reality is nothing more than empty halls.
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