Rethinking America’s Highways

One of the nation’s leading experts on infrastructure policy, Robert Poole, will discuss his new book, Rethinking America’s Highways: A 21st-Century Vision for Better Infrastructure. The book examines our current structure of highway ownership and financing and describes why major reforms are needed. Poole argues for a new model that treats highways in a more commercial manner, akin to public utilities. Motorists, the economy, and the environment would all gain if highway investments were driven more by market signals than by politics, he finds.

With increased highway congestion and large financing gaps on the horizon, Poole provides critical input to America’s debate over infrastructure. Poole is an MIT-trained engineer who has advised numerous administrations, the Federal Highway Administration, and various state highway agencies on infrastructure issues.

Dr. Jonathan Gifford will provide comments on Poole’s book. Gifford has a PhD in civil engineering, specializing in transportation, and he is an expert on the Interstate Highway System and infrastructure finance. He is director of the George Mason University (GMU) Center for Transportation Public-Private Partnership Policy, as well as a professor in GMU’s Schar School of Policy and Government.