David C. Bauer, President and CEO–American Road and Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) reported that the Coronavirus outbreak is an unprecedented national challenge that has brought many sectors of America’s economy to a grinding, government-mandated halt. Stock markets have fluctuated widely, small businesses are teetering, and unemployment claims have soared.
Yet, while most of us stay home, we are still seeing firsthand outside our windows, on television or online, roads being repaved, heavy equipment operating on highways, and bridges being repaired.
That’s because many of the nation’s governors have deemed such public works construction as “ESSENTIAL”, meaning the transportation construction industry we represent has remained active and working in most states. While ARTBA’s members and the industry’s construction contractors recognize the significance of their work to all aspects of the American way of life, the safety and health of industry workers remain top priority.
In fact, several features of transportation work allow it to be performed at significantly reduced COVID-19 risk:
Projects are already in an outdoor setting,
so social distancing and dispersal of workers naturally occur
… except NOW, they are MANDATED …
State departments of transportation and other agencies administering projects are working closely with our industry to implement a full range of safeguards against COVID-19 on job sites. Transportation construction firms are adding these protocols to their existing and extensive project site safety practices—for example:
• Massachusetts Contractors must complete a daily 17-point checklist of COVID-19 protection measures for each highway project
• Massachusetts Transportation agencies have held full-day “safety stand downs” in which all project participants stopped work and reviewed these requirements in detail
• Transportation agencies in Kentucky, Tennessee, and elsewhere are increasing the use of electronic documents, eliminating the risks of sharing hard copies
On project sites, employers are using screening questions before anyone enters
• Sick employees are sent home
• Workers are fully and properly utilizing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)—
includes excess inventory of N-95 respirators being donated to healthcare facilities in many states
• Contractors are regularly directing employees to clean and disinfect tools, supplies, and equipment
• Contractors are regularly directing employees to practice proper hygiene, including frequent hand-washing
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Why is it so important for these infrastructure
improvements to move forward?
In 2019, transportation construction generated $610 billion in economic activity and sustained more than 4 million U.S. jobs. As a recession looms, continued project activity triggers two-pronged economic benefits:
Short term—project activity creates and sustains construction, related industry jobs, and tax revenue.
Long term—project activity builds up capital assets that will enhance economic productivity for many decades by improving supply chain efficiency, and by providing access to jobs, services, materials, and markets.
Transportation infrastructure projects require years of planning and environmental reviews by a myriad of state and federal regulators before they reach the construction phase. Recovering from disruptions in the project pipeline can take years, add costs to public owners, and impose hardship on workers.
A number of states are even taking advantage of extremely reduced highway traffic to currently accelerate construction activities.
1—Florida just announced plans to complete $2.1 billion in highway and bridge projects earlier than expected
2—Maryland’s contractors finished repairs to the “Chesapeake Bay Bridge” a month earlier than planned
3—New Jersey and other states are moving some of their night work, which is always more dangerous, to daytime hours
In difficult times, the U.S. transportation construction industry is uniquely equipped to keep working. In partnership with government agencies across the country, companies in this sector are committed to providing healthy workplaces and continuing to build the projects that will help lead our economic recovery.
ARTBA:
1902—Established, then-named American Road Makers (ARM), by founder Horatio Earle, Public Official-Michigan with this express purpose to advocate for construction of a federally-led “Capital Connecting Government Highway”. The charter was approved. Earle said ARTBA would connect “every state capital with every other state capital, and every capital with the United States Capital-Washington”.1910—Re-named American Road Builders Association (ARBA).
1956—Earle’s dream came to fruition—ALL state capitals were connected every other state capital, and every capital with Washington, D.C. The association’s members designed, built, and continue to manage the Interstates and the nation’s intermodal surface transportation network.
1977—the organization became the American Road &Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA), with Valentin J. Riva, (New President and CEO-ACPA (1977)) as General Counsel and Chief Lobbyist. Market development and protection on behalf of the U.S. transportation design and construction industry will always remain the core mission.
For the ARTBA CORONAVIRUS RESOURCE PAGE, please go to:
SAFETY RESOURCES (www.artba.org/coronavirus/):
• COVID-19 Checklist for Transportation Construction Employers and Employees (One-Page Version)
• COVID-19 Checklist for Transportation Construction Employers and Employees (Two Page Version) *** (Also available in Spanish)
• Construction Industry Safety Coalition Recommendations: COVID-19 Exposure Prevention, Preparedness, and Response Plan for Construction *** (Also available in Spanish)
• COVID-19 Toolbox Talk *** (Also available in Spanish)
For more, including RESOURCES for ARTBA MEMBERS, GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS, AGENCIES, please go to: www.artba.org/coronavirus/
ARTICLES:
“Yes, this is the ideal time to be fixing roads”: www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/op-eds/yes-this-is-the-ideal-time-to-be-fixing-roads
“SCDOT to take advantage of less traffic and move forward with roadwork across SC”: https://www.counton2.com/news/south-carolina-news/scdot-to-take-advantage-of-less-traffic-and-move-forward-with-roadwork-across-sc/
ARTBA history and Home Photo (Road test in Ottawa, Illinois—established the principles used for pavement and bridge design on the Interstate system—American Association of State Highway Officials (AASHO/now AASHTO)); from “The Past, Present, and Future of the American Concrete Pavement Association”. For the publication PDF, please go to: www.acpa.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/ACPA-Concrete-Legacy-LORES.pdf
For more ARTBA History, please go to: www.artba.org/about/history/