Arkansas has 12,523 bridges. While progress has been made in improving the condition of Arkansas bridges, 32% of all Arkansas bridges have been in service for at least 50 years. In Arkansas, the average age of bridges in service is 38 years, while 21% of bridges are deficient by bridge deck surface area. The estimated cost to repair or replace all 2,658 structurally deficient bridges in Arkansas is $1.14 billion. To put this need in perspective, in 2012, Arkansas spent approximately $7.2 million on bridge maintenance.
Dams in Arkansas are designed and built primarily to provide flood risk management, water supply, recreation, hydropower, and transportation. Arkansas has 1,193 state regulated dams across the state, and approximately 1 in every 5 of these dams have either high-hazard or significant hazard potential. The number of high hazard dams is 144 or 12% of regulated dams, and the number of significant hazard dams is 92 or 8% of regulated dams. While on an upward trend previously, the 2013 State Dam Safety budget has declined. When the budget is compared in context of the number high hazard potential dams, Arkansas does not meet the national average.
Arkansas’ public water supply accounts for approximately 404 million gallons per day to serve 2.6 million people. For the next 20 years, an estimated $6.1 billion dollars of funding will be necessary to keep up with the State’s growing drinking water needs. Arkansas’ water transmission and distribution system, which consists mostly of buried pipes, represents 72% of the capital needs of drinking water facilities in the State. Of the 2,615 miles of water transmission and distribution lines that will require replacement or rehabilitation within the next 20 years, 14% of these projects need attention now. A state-wide 2014 Arkansas Water Plan is currently under development by the Arkansas Natural Resources Commission to evaluate the state’s water needs until 2050.
Levee systems are built to prevent flooding by piling earth along rivers. In Arkansas, there are 106 levee systems, and of them, 90 are federal levees and 16 are non-federal levees. Less than 70% of the systems have adequate flood protection or added safety height to the levee design. Currently more than 50% of systems in Arkansas are ‘inactive’ in the USACE Rehabilitation and Inspection Program due to poor inspection ratings. Of the 13 major levees in Arkansas longer than 25 miles in length, inspection ratings show that no levee system was rated as acceptable; 4 out of the 13 systems are rated as minimally acceptable, and nine out of the 13 are rated as unacceptable.
Arkansas has the 12th largest state highway system in the nation with 16,398 miles. While Arkansas has taken steps to improve road conditions, due to the lack of available funding the State has begun putting needed projects on hold as the federal Highway Trust Fund’s long-term solvency is uncertain and no state revenue sources are identified to backfill the investment needed.
Residents in 60 of the 75 counties in Arkansas have access to some type of public transportation service, and ridership estimates imply that nearly half a million people are in need of public transportation at some time. Two urbanized areas in the State have established transit service on a fixed route—Little Rock and Fayetteville. Due to the location of the ridership, only 36% of the estimated potential 13 million transit trips in the State are being met. This need is projected to grow to 9.6 million trips and 560,000 people by 2020.
Wastewater infrastructure is important to all modern societies to keep the water unpolluted and able to naturally replenish. EPA’s Clean Watersheds Needs Survey from 2008 and 2012 shows that the investment needs for wastewater facilities for the next 20 years in Arkansas have jumped from $470 million to $763 million. The 2012 Survey found that 214 wastewater treatment facilities in Arkansas needed facility upgrades and improvements over the next 20 years, and water treatment systems needed doubled the improvements compared to 2008. There was also a ten-fold increase for secondary treatment facilities from $15M to $126M. Although most of the facilities are currently reasonably maintained and normally operated below design capacities, the future needs of Arkansas’ wastewater systems will need a significant amount of capital investment.
A: EXCEPTIONAL, B: GOOD, C: MEDIOCRE, D: POOR, F: FAILING
Each category was evaluated on the basis of capacity, condition, funding, future need, operation and maintenance, public safety, resilience, and innovation
Aviation
78 public-use airports
Bridges
765 (5.94%) of the 12,864 bridges are structurally deficient
Dams
193 high hazard dams
Dams with EAPS
70% of the state regulated dams have an Emergency Action Plan
Drinking Water
$7.38 billion in drinking water infrastructure needs over the next 20 years
Hazardous Waste
9 sites on the National Priorities List
Inland Waterways
1,860 miles of inland waterways, ranking it 3rd
Levees
1,458 miles of levees
Ports
18.2 million short tons of cargo in 2012, ranking it 30th nationally
Public Parks
$231.72 million of unmet needs for its parks system
Rail
2,505 miles of freight railroads across the state, ranking 26th nationally
Road Costs
$543 per motorist per year in costs from driving on roads in need of repair
Roads
102,603 miles of Public Roads, with 17% in poor condition
Schools
$587 million gap in estimated school capital expenditures
Transit
6,183,297 annual unlinked passenger trips via transit systems including bus, transit, and commuter trains
Wastewater
$715 million in wastewater infrastructure needs over the next 20 years
We can no longer afford to defer investment in our nation’s critical infrastructure systems.
Smart investment will only be possible with leadership, planning, and a clear vision for our nation’s infrastructure.
We have to utilize new approaches, materials, and technologies to ensure our infrastructure is more resilient.
July 01, 2019
Our transportation network is the backbone of the economy. To keep that network strong, we must modernize and maintain our roads, bridges, and other transportation...
House Tees Up Second FY20 Minibus
June 21, 2019
This week, the House began voting on its second FY20 “minibus,” or spending package. H.R. 3055 includes the following appropriations bills: Transportation, Housing & Urban...
National Levee Safety Program Gets Some Love in the FY20 Minibus
June 21, 2019
Tis the season for appropriations! The fiscal year 2020 (FY20) appropriations process is well underway, and the House of Representatives passed the first minibus of...
America Scores a D+
@YourCongressPerson
The 2017 Infrastructure Report Card gives our nation a D+ across 16 infrastructure categories #InfrastructureMatters
Fix the Trust Fund
@YourCongressPerson
#FixTheTrustFund to put us on a road to better transportation! #InfrastructureMatters
