Newsletter: Bridge Closed

Statement

Dear friend,

Over the last couple weeks, I've taken the opportunity to once again visit some of New Hampshire's most urgent road and bridge construction projects. What I hear over and over again from local officials and nearby residents is that road and bridge disrepair is hurting the local economy, increasing traffic, adding wear and tear to vehicles, and is a threat to public safety.

Earlier this week, I met with construction contractors in Lebanon who are eager to get to work repairing our roads and bridges. What's holding them back? Sadly, it's Congress, which hasn't provided the funding needed so that planning, hiring and construction can get underway. These projects can't wait any longer and stable funding is long overdue.

This week, as the Senate considered transportation funding legislation, I introduced an amendment that would provide funding for bridge repair across the country, including the 324 New Hampshire bridges that are listed as structurally deficient and the 451 that are listed as functionally obsolete. As this debate in Washington continues, I will use every opportunity to urge Congress to pass a transportation funding bill that allows the many stalled road and bridge projects across New Hampshire to get underway.

Sincerely,

Jeanne Shaheen

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