The American Society of Civil Engineers in Connecticut issued its 2022 report card, which grades the state’s infrastructure. Engineers gave the state an overall GPA of C, meaning the infrastructure is in mediocre condition and requires attention.
They judge each category based on capacity, condition, funding, future needs, operation and maintenance, public safety, resilience and innovation.
“This report is a snapshot tool for residents, municipalities, businesses and policy makers as a reference when they engage in conversation about where we are and where we want to be,” said Scott Nolan, the president of the Connecticut Society of Civil Engineers.
“Our state is home to some of the oldest infrastructure in the country and as a coastal state, we face increasingly severe weather events due to climate change. These factors are putting significant strain on our infrastructure network. We rely on our infrastructure to stand up to these threats so our residents can feel safe and communities can prosper,” said Roy Merritt, a senior construction engineer at Lochner and the 2022 report card chair.
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Each category is graded individually.
Bridges in our state were given a C. There has been significant construction and ongoing improvements to state bridges, but improvements to locally maintained bridges have lagged behind.
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Roads in our state were given a D-. The report found that there is more traffic than before the pandemic, several crash-related deaths across the state and rural roads lack sidewalks, bike lanes or pose outsized dangers.
Rails did much better with a B rating because over the last five years, the Department of Transportation and Amtrak have upgraded the system. With that said, engineers found that rail cars are older than recommended and bridges are in fair or poor condition. Both of those threaten capacity and increase costs.
Drinking water in Connecticut was given a C grade. The report found we have high quality water, but our systems are aging.
Wastewater got a C- since the infrastructure is also aging, along with the workforce.
