ICYMI: Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland in the Commercial Appeal: 'Congress must act to provide Memphis the infrastructure our citizens deserve'

Yesterday, Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland penned an op-ed in the Commercial Appeal calling on Congress to pass the American Jobs Plan.

In the op-ed, Mayor Strickland writes: "In Memphis alone, we have identified nearly $20 Billion in current infrastructure needs – and the list grows each year. Some items on that list include: roadway and street improvements, bridge repairs and maintenance, storm water/flood mitigation, updating solid waste facilities, sewer system upgrades, Memphis Area Transit Authority upgrades, broadband connectivity, upgrading to smart grids, and improvements at the Memphis International Airport.

"For all the above reasons and many more not listed in this editorial, the bipartisan passage of an infrastructure bill, such as the American Jobs Plan, has never been more important."

Mayor Strickland also referenced the cracked I-40 Hernando DeSoto bridge, which Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg visited last week: "For years, our roads, bridges, sewers, ports, harbors, airports, and utilities have been the backbone of our economy. But, as we were recently harshly reminded by the fracture in the Hernando DeSoto bridge, our infrastructure is aging and in dire need of updating."

Click through to see fact sheets on the need for infrastructure investment in Tennessee, Arkansas, and Mississippi.

Commercial Appeal: Congress must act to provide Memphis the infrastructure our citizens deserve
[Mayor Jim Strickland, 6/7/21]

Memphis is the world's distribution center.

More cargo moves through the Memphis International Airport than anywhere else on the globe. We're the fourth largest inland port in the country.

Five Class I railroads run through our city, and prior to the recent fracture, over 40,000 cars and trucks used I-40 and roughly 60,000 crossed over I-55 every single day.

For years, our roads, bridges, sewers, ports, harbors, airports, and utilities have been the backbone of our economy. But, as we were recently harshly reminded by the fracture in the Hernando DeSoto bridge, our infrastructure is aging and in dire need of updating.

With each passing year, our homes, businesses, industry, jobs, schools, and so much more have critical dependence on modernized, high-quality infrastructure. As our cities continue to update and evolve, those needs for infrastructure will only continue to grow and change with them.

When we think about those needs, it's important to remember that infrastructure is more than just roads and bridges. The need for broadband infrastructure, smart electric grids, and intelligent transportation system (ITS) infrastructure, for example, are becoming just as necessary for cities to thrive—just as necessary as electricity 100 years ago.

In Memphis alone, we have identified nearly $20 Billion in current infrastructure needs – and the list grows each year. Some items on that list include: roadway and street improvements, bridge repairs and maintenance, storm water/flood mitigation, updating solid waste facilities, sewer system upgrades, Memphis Area Transit Authority upgrades, broadband connectivity, upgrading to smart grids, and improvements at the Memphis International Airport.

For all the above reasons and many more not listed in this editorial, the bipartisan passage of an infrastructure bill, such as the American Jobs Plan, has never been more important.

Whether conservative or liberal, we can all agree infrastructure in Tennessee, Memphis in particular, has suffered from a systemic lack of investment.

The need for action is clear. This bill package will include much needed funding in all the areas mentioned above, and I urge Congress to pass it.

Jim Strickland is the mayor of Memphis.