President-elect Obama's much anticipated Economic Stimulus Plan is in danger of prolonging out-of-date economic ideas, with its anachronistic search for "shovel-ready" projects. Governors and Members of Congress are telling Obama that, if the purpose is to stimulate the economy, then the Stimulus should be spent on "shovel-ready" projects that create jobs in the short-term. Missouri, for example, has said it would spend all of its money on highways, and none on St Louis mass transit. Environmental and smart-growth advocates are warning that this focus on traditional transportation projects will result in "roads to nowhere" that only deepen our dependence on foreign oil and increase greenhouse gas emissions, all while transit budgets are being slashed even though transit ridership still breaks new records despite falling gas prices.
It's precisely because traditional roads projects invest relatively little in design that they are "shovel-ready".
While the concerns of environmental and smart-growth advocates are valid, they do not go far enough. The focus on "shovel-ready" projects doesn't just postpone the creation of a green infrastructure for America, it reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of how jobs are created in the emerging economy. A transit infrastructure for a sustainable city requires a much larger investment in design than do traditional roads projects. Conversely, it's precisely because traditional roads projects invest relatively little in design that they are "shovel-ready".
The present need to redesign our cities, our buildings and our products for sustainability coincides with the rise of the creative class, such that design is playing a far more prominent role in the economy than 10 or 20 years ago. Redesign of cities is done by urban planners, a profession filled with tens of thousands of transportation planners, civil and environmental engineers, architects, geographers, surveyors and market researchers. These people are the key to green collar jobs when it comes to transit. Creation of design jobs for these folks leads to green collar jobs for construction workers, and would be the short-term result of any investment in green infrastructure by Obama's Stimulus Plan.
Some expect the Stimulus to include $100 billion for green jobs, following the recommendation of the Center for American Progress. While such an investment would be welcome, this represents a small portion of the expected $750+ billion package. CAP's moderate recommendation, it seems, reflects the same misunderstanding of where the jobs are in the new economy. According to p. 7 of CAP's report,
Other areas, such as building light-rail or subway systems, will entail long lead times before a large amount of new hiring and spending occurs, but higher funding for existing mass transit and light rail projects would result in job growth in engineering, electrical work, welding, metal fabrication, and engine assembly sectors.
While the jobs listed by CAP do make up the vast majority of spending for roads projects, roads projects are not the model for green infrastructure projects. To do light-rail, subway, trolleys and bus rapid transit right, an investment in every stage of urban planning and design is required.
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