Megaregions The Buildings Blocks of a National Infrastructure Plan

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Megaregions The Buildings Blocks of a National
Infrastructure Plan

• Petra Todorovich
• Director, America 2050
• Regional Plan Association
• July 30, 2008
• ACCE/ Alliance for Regional Stewardship
• Regional Strategies Forum 2008
• Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

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Key National and Global Trends
Rapid population growth and demographic change
Energy security and global climate change
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Globalization and rising foreign trade
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Changing spatial development patterns
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Uneven Growth PatternsPopulation Change 2000 -
2050
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Emerging Megaregions
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Why Megaregions?

• Challenges occur at scale greater than
  metropolitan region
• Compete with global integration zones
• Foster larger industry clusters and deeper labor
  markets
• Act as building blocks to a national
  infrastructure plan

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A Tradition of National Planning
Conference of Governors 1908
Theodore Roosevelt and Gifford Pinchot 1908
Gallatin Plan 1808
National planning in this country is widely
believed to be an un-American activity, an
exercise in bureaucratic hubris best left to the
French. In fact Robert Fishman
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National Resources Planning Board and the
Interstate System
Early interstate plan, from Toll Roads and Free
Roads, National Resources Planning Board and
Bureau of Public Roads, 1939
National System of Interstate Highways, Public
Roads Administration, 1947
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Toward a 21st Century Infrastructure Investment
Plan

Judith Rodin
Earl Blumenauer
Ed Rendell
Tom Donohue
Forum at Woodrow Wilson Center Washington,
D.C. May 9, 2008
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Water
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Aging Water Infrastructure

• EPA Gap Analysis - 20 Year investment
• Capital Needs 124 billion
• Operating and Maintenance 309 billion
• Source Clean Water and Drinking Water Infra. Gap
  Analysis, U.S. EPA, 2002.

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Population Pressures on Water Supply
Lake Lanier, Atlanta Reservoir
Lake Mead, Las Vegas Reservoir
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Climate Change and Water Infrastructure
Storm Surge Risk in Houston, TX
Flooding in Iowa, Jun 2008
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Energy
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Securing our Energy Future

• Efficiency
• Research and Development
• Steady market signals
• Transmission
• The Smart Grid

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Renewable Energy and the Smart Grid
Source The Economist, ABB
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Transportation
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Foreign Oil Imports
Petroleum imports (millions of barrels) 1960 -
2007
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We drive more and more.

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Transportation Costs add to Rising Household Costs
Shares of transportation, utility and housing
costs for ranges of household incomes
Source Bureau of Labor Statistics 2006
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Structurally Deficient Bridges
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A Purposeful Transportation Program

• Transportation authorization 2009 and beyond
• Reduce foreign oil dependence
• Cut greenhouse gas emissions
• Move goods efficiently and reliably
• Provide greater transportation choice
• Improve safety
• Cut transportation costs for families

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A National Infrastructure Vision

• High-speed rail
• Seaports
• Energy transmission
• Water infrastructure and protection
• International airports

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The Northeast Megaregion

• 49 million inhabitants
• 17 of U.S. population on 2 of the land area
• 20 of U.S. GDP
• Will add 19 million additional people by 2050

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Business Alliance for Northeast Mobility

• Support multi-year funding authorization/
  appropriations for Amtrak
• Develop a vision for the future of the Northeast
  Corridor mobility
• Advance Northeast interests in 2009
  transportation bill

Northeast Summit Mar 2007
U.S. Capitol Reception Apr 2008
Leadership Exchange Oct 2006
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Implementation Dancing among the Scales

• City planning
• Regional planning
• Megaregion-scale coordination
• National Infrastructure Vision

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www.America2050.org