Alex Tabarrok of Marginal Revolution just ticked off a list of items where infrastructure investment through private-public partnerships (PPPs) could make American even better.
It’s one of the few subject areas that many Americans agree could help both the economy and Americans’ day-to-day lifestyles. Now, it’s just a question of whether America has the will to get them done.
Here’s the short list:
- Airports: Both through privatization of the management of airports as well as the overhaul of aging terminals.
- Airplanes: The Federal Aviation Administration’s ban on supersonic aircraft has to do with noise. Innovation in this area could produce new, powerful, and quieter planes.
- The Electrical Grid: Tabarrok notes that “we have more blackouts than any other developed nation. It is a national embarrassment when millions of US residents our thrown into the dark by grid failures.” Lots of room for modifications and upgrades.
- Alternative Energy Transmission Lines: Solar and wind only work as well as the energy they generate being moved to where it’s needed.
- Nuclear Power Reactors: Technology has come huge distances, and the newest nuclear power plant in the United States is about to go live. New reactors are safe, smaller, and more versatile integrating with alternative energy sources.
This is just one set of options for building infrastructure that isn’t just to create “shovel ready” jobs, but actually can produce returns on investment.
Read the details of these infrastructure projects at Marginal Revolution.
