Written by Melody Eve Ramos
On August 10, 2021, the Senate passed a historical $1.2 trillion dollar infrastructure package that is expected to have a far-reaching impact on the construction industry. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act includes $550 billion in new spending, a majority of which will be funding new construction projects. Some highlights of the bill include:
Construction Technology
Si Katara, the co-founder of The Coalition for Smarter Infrastructure Investments, shared in a statement, “With increased funding, it’s more important than ever to modernize how we design, build and manage infrastructure so that each dollar we invest goes further.”
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act will go a long way towards helping Katara and industry leaders achieve that goal. A commitment of $100 million over five years has been written into the bill to fund the deployment of digital construction technologies, such as 3D modeling software and digital project management platforms. An additional $20 million annual investment has been allotted to fund innovation in construction management.
Road Projects and Safety
The bill has set aside $110 billion over five years for federal highway programs, a 35% increase from previous bills. Of that $110 billion, $40 billion is dedicated to road and bridge repair, replacement, and rehabilitation in a manner that focuses on climate change mitigation. $11 billion will be used to fund transportation safety programs across the country.
Community Rebuilding
Lack of roadways, funding and modern city planning has caused many communities to be underserved. The bill’s $1 billion community rebuilding budget sets to fix this. The money has been set aside to fund planning, design, demolition, and reconstruction of street grids, parks, or other infrastructure in communities where transportation options are limited.
Power Infrastructure
The largest investment in clean energy in American history, a sum of $73 billion, has been allotted to the upgrading of our power grid. Projects include expansion of transmission lines to expand the use of renewable energy, research and development, and investment into new generation technology.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act intends to grow the economy, create jobs, and improve life for Americans across the country for years to come.
https://www.forconstructionpros.com/infrastructure/news/21452441/where-does-bidens-infrastructure-bill-stand https://www.constructiondive.com/news/infrastructure-technology-funding/604766/ https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/07/28/fact-sheet-historic-bipartisan-infrastructure-deal/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/us-policy/2021/08/10/infrastructure-senate-spending-nepa/