Obama right to focus on infrastructure

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As hundreds of billions of dollars seemingly are conjured out of thin air in Washington as officials seek to repair the financial system and stimulate the economy, polls show the American public remains dubious.

There is one idea that deserves widespread, bipartisan support.

That is President-elect Barack Obama’s proposal to spend billions on new roads, bridges, electric transmission lines and similar projects to rebuild and improve the nation’s infrastructure.

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President-elect Obama

President-elect Obama

His interest in the topic predates the current economic crisis. Months ago on the campaign trail, Obama voiced support for the national infrastructure bank proposed in a bill introduced by Sen. Chuck Hagel, R-Neb., and Sen. Chris Dodd, D-Conn.

Now he’s found new justification for investing in infrastructure as a way to boost employment.

Details are still sketchy, but the numbers being floated as part of a new economic stimulus package generally run between $300 billion and $700 billion.

Obama said his plan calls for “creating and saving 2.5 million jobs — jobs rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges, modernizing our schools and creating the clean energy infrastructure of the 21st century.”

There’s no shortage of potential local projects. The list includes:

* The south beltway around Lincoln from Nebraska 2 on the east to U.S. 77 on the west. The $150 million project would divert traffic-clogging trucks and other traffic from the stretch of Nebraska 2 that goes through Lincoln.

* The city of Lincoln says it has a backlog of $135 million worth of other street and road projects.

* The city of Omaha dumps raw sewage into the Missouri River whenever parts of the city receive more than a tenth of rain. The city is under federal orders to fix the problem. That may cost $1.5 billion. The city of Beatrice has a similar problem.

* Levees along Salt Creek protect Lincoln only against a 50-year flood, and they might not even offer that protection because they are formed of soil containing a high amount of calcium, which dissolves in water.

The need for the nation to invest more in infrastructure was dramatized last year by the collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis. In Lincoln, the need was dramatized by the city’s abrupt closure of the Holdrege Street bridge this year after pieces began falling off.

The United States currently invests only 2.4 percent of its gross national product in infrastructure, according to The Economist magazine. Europe invests about 5 percent.

One reason why the public is suspicious of Washington’s bailout schemes is that it’s difficult to identify the public benefit.

By comparison, spending on infrastructure has one significant advantage. At least the public is guaranteed it will have something to show for the money.