Indiana Gets D+ on Infrastructure

   Indiana has received a grade of only D+ for its roads and waterways.

   The American Society of Civil Engineers says Indiana's public works need a lot of improvement.

   Local government leaders don't dispute the report. They say better roads and cleaner rivers are a top priority, and that they're making progress to getting there.

   The ASCE broke down the overall grade into seven areas. Bridges, aviation, and roads scored in the Cs. Drinking water, rail, dams, and wastewater got Ds.  

   One major concern in the report: Indiana's largest communities dumped 26 billion gallons of sewage into state waterways in just one year.

   “It smells horrible,” said Lora Abbott as she left a Fort Wayne gas station. “When you get into Fort Wayne, that's one of the first things that you smell and see is how bad the water is.”

   City Utilities spokesman Frank Suarez says Fort Wayne is targeting that problem, investing $240 million over 17 years. But, he says, every improvement comes down to money.

   “When you're getting money from ratepayers, you have to be aware of what the community can handle and what the community desires are,” said Suarez.

   Indiana also scored low on roads. The report said the state doesn't have enough money to maintain them. INDOT district director Bob Alderman says that's something the Legislature will have to address.

   “We're going to be challenged in order to keep up all of this new construction in our present highway system,” said Alderman.

   But, he says, northeast Indiana has major projects going on that will benefit the area.

   “We have hundreds of millions of dollars worth of construction going on all the time,” said Alderman.

   Looking at Indiana's low grades, Alderman says the report has some merit, but he's skeptical.

   “I understand that these types of reports are important. I also understand they're coming from an interest group that makes their living off of making these improvements,” said Alderman.

   To view the full report, visit http://www.inasce.org/images/Report%20Card%20Final.pdf.