A recent report from the Urban Land Institute (ULI), co-published by Ernst & Young, looks at the "Evolving Market for Infrastructure Funding, Development, Management". According to ULI, "The United States' relatively low investment in virtually all aspects of mobility-related infrastructure -- airports, public transit, railway systems, roads and bridges -- is an 'emerging crisis' that will compromise the ability of the nation's cities to compete globally."
 
"Infrastructure 2007: A Global Perspective offers a comprehensive look at the status of current and planned infrastructure investment and development in a variety of categories in countries worldwide, with a particular focus on the United States, China, Japan, India, and Europe."
 
"America is more of a follower and no longer a world leader when it comes to infrastructure," the report states. "Other countries marshal vanguard strategies and provide the contemporary lessons for developing best practices in public/private finance, intermodal transport, congestion pricing and high-speed rail...Too often (in the U.S.), projects focus on restoration rather than rethinking the model and finding possible efficiencies...There is a tendency to invest in the infrastructure we have instead of the infrastructure we will need."
 
The report sees the private sector as taking an increasingly important role in the development of infrastructure in the U.S. and the world over the next 50 years.  It predicts that with increasing privatization and public-private relationships, infrastructure will emerge as a new asset class for investors.  It also identifies trends and issues specific to the U.S.
 
The report recommends that "if infrastructure expenditures are comprehensively planned and integrated with regional land use, the lasting economic benefits can be enormous, propelling the nation's growth for generations...The country needs a new model for how it plans and pays for infrastructure, including how it plans its communities."
 
Full Press Release...
 
Click here for direct link to Full Report or here using the general link address 
(Note: PDF file with long wait for download)
 
 
 
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