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Idaho's infrastructure earns 'C-' grade

Posted at 3:05 PM, Mar 08, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-08 19:19:11-05

The Southern Idaho Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers released their 2018 Report Card for Idaho's Infrastructure Thursday.  

In seven categories, Idaho earned an overall grade of 'C-'. 

The report includes an evaluation of the state's bridges (D), dams (C), drinking water (C), energy (B-), roads (C-), schools (C-) and wastewater (B-). 

"The GPA remains unchanged from the 2012 Report Card for Idaho's Infrastructure," Seth Olsen, Idaho Infrastructure Report Card chair, said. "Idaho is the fastest growing state in the country... As a whole, the 'C-' means we're doing too little to prepare for the future." 

The report finds nearly half of the existing bridges on the state highway system and nearly 30 percent of local bridges are 50 years or older. Most bridges in the 20th century were constructed for a 50-year design life. 

The report also concludes the Idaho Legislature's budget for state roads and highways is insufficient to meet current and future demands. 

ASCE State Infrastructure Report Cards are modeled after a national report card which gave America's infrastructure a grade of 'D+' in 2017.