Shaheen Statement Following White House Meeting: “We Should Seize This Bipartisan Opportunity to Invest in America’s Infrastructure”

(Washington, DC) – U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) issued the following statement after a meeting at the White House between President Trump, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, and other legislators, to discuss a path forward for investing in America’s infrastructure:

“We should seize this bipartisan opportunity to invest in America’s infrastructure,” said Shaheen. “For too long, Washington has procrastinated while roads, bridges, water and wastewater infrastructure in New Hampshire and across the country have crumbled. Further, there’s a severe lack of access to broadband internet, particularly in rural areas of New Hampshire, that is holding back local economies, and I’m glad the issue was included in today’s discussion. It’s now time to put aside petty politics and invest in projects that are critical to public safety and the future of our economy. I will continue to work across the aisle to deliver bipartisan infrastructure legislation to the President’s desk.”

In its 2017 Infrastructure Report Card, the American Society of Engineers gave our nation’s infrastructure an overall grade of D+ and our nation’s bridge network a barely passing grade of C+. The same report gave New Hampshire’s bridges a C-, below the national average, and indicated that 22 percent of New Hampshire’s public roads are in poor condition. According to TRIP, a national transportation research group, driving on roads in need of repair costs each New Hampshire motorists nearly $317 each year.

U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) is the author of legislation that would begin to address the more than 56,000 structurally deficient bridges across the country. The SAFE Bridges Act would authorize an additional $2.75 billion annually to enable states to repair and replace their structurally deficient bridges.