February 15, 2009 – According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, every $1 billion spent on transport infrastructure creates 35,000 jobs, but that figure is just the beginning.

One school of thought suggests that existing assets should be repaired or upgraded before starting new projects, if only because more construction jobs are created in the process.  Others favour bus and train transportation projects which are apparently even more effective at job creation than repairing existing roads.

Perhaps the U.S. experience to date may be instructive, where numerous “shovel ready” infrastructure projects are already competing for the same stimulus dollar. As New York Governor David Peterson says, “Everyone with a shovel says they’re shovel ready.”

Even if the “right” projects are “shovel ready”, politics may be another hurdle. According to our own federal Liberals, just under 80 per cent of all projects announced as recipients of cash from a new multibillion-dollar federal infrastructure program are in ridings held by the Conservatives. Of 27 infrastructure projects announced in 2007 and 2008, only six were in ridings currently represented by opposition parties while 21 were in federal ridings held by Conservative MPs. Unsurprisingly, the Conservatives dispute Liberal claims of partisan funding.

With the words “infrastructure” and “shovel ready” now vaulted in our daily lexicon, public awareness of the importance of the roadbuilding industry is has increased significantly. The challenge now is to make sure that public funds are seen to be spent wisely, despite the pressing need and the potholes of competing interests and politics.