The Mercatus Center at George Mason University presents a discussion of transportation infrastructure policy in the United States and the role that financing, funding, and technology play in determining how American infrastructure is maintained and built. Several proposals have emerged from Congress and the Trump administration to address America’s infrastructure needs, including the establishment of an infrastructure bank, tax credits for companies that finance infrastructure projects, direct federal spending, and reducing regulatory red tape related to transportation costs.
Invited scholars have contributed essays that address the following question as it applies to their individual research focus: Will any of these proposed measures alone, or in combination, be effective? And if not, what alternative measures might be offered to improve the efficiency and efficacy of the US transportation system?
In their essays the authors discuss the likely effects of current proposals and suggest alternatives. Their alternative proposals include congestion pricing, financing models that give more discretion to state and local governments, the use of information technology, and minimizing the role politics plays in determining project priorities.