Memphis, TN — Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland highlights the nation’s infrastructure imperative in a new op-ed for the Daily Memphian, arguing that “infrastructure is an area ripe for resolution” and that policymakers should look to freight railroads’ user-pay example of high infrastructure spending.
“Behind rail’s ability to make consistent, high-level investments is sound public policy that balances the needs of railroads and shippers. This sensible regulatory framework, since its inception over three decades ago, has led to the most productive and cost-effective freight rail system in the world. When government works with innovators, it leads to the kind of technological advances we see in rail – from positive train control to efficiency strides that let a train today move a ton of freight 479 miles on a single gallon of diesel.”
“Freight rail’s lesson for Tennessee infrastructure is twofold: we must continue to invest to get world-class transportation systems and we must look to new solutions to fund these investments.”
