Rep. Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA), in front of Reading’s Penn Street Bridge, outlines her infrastructure plan for Berks and Chester Counties in Pennsylvania.

READING, PA – Representative Chrissy Houlahan (D-PA) announced her infrastructure priorities for her community in Pennsylvania alongside state and industry stakeholders. She stood in front of Reading’s Penn Street Bridge, a “poor-rated” bridge that carries high volumes of commuters over the Schuylkill River. The local landmark is currently undergoing a rehabilitation project, 80% of which is federally funded. She urged Congress, specifically the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee that has jurisdiction over infrastructure funding, to take swift action on an issue that affects the entire country, especially Reading in Berks County, which is one of the most highly travelled parts of the Commonwealth, according to the 2015 Urban Mobility Scorecard.

“Pennsylvania has the ninth largest inventory of highway bridges in the country,” said Houlahan. “I’m here today because Pennsylvanians in my community depend on me and all of Congress to take action to ensure that we are working for the people to fix our crumbling infrastructure. We need a bipartisan funding package that addresses among other things the nearly 300 structurally deficient bridges in our community alone, that restores solvency of the Highway Trust Fund, that increases the use of public transit like BARTA and SEPTA, and that creates jobs through building a more green infrastructure. We need this now. It has been far too long since Congress has acted on something literally as essential as the infrastructure that binds us together as a nation.”

“The focus of this press conference was the federal government's role in infrastructure” said State Senator Judy Schwank. “I appreciate Congresswoman Houlahan's focus on these needs in our community. While the state has invested significant funds to improve roads, highways and bridges, the federal government needs to step up and fulfill their commitment to improving infrastructure.”

“We have made tremendous progress and are investing as we can, but we need action from our state and federal partners to put us on sustainable footing for the future,” said George McAuley, PennDOT Deputy Secretary for Highway Administration. “The federal government needs to take meaningful action on transportation funding, and the state needs to support our efforts in flood mitigation and other critical needs by passing the Governor’s Restore Pennsylvania proposal.”

“The federal highway user fee has not been increased since 1993, a span that covers four presidential administrations and several changes in Congressional majority,” said Robert Latham, Executive Vice President of Associated Pennsylvania Constructors. “I thank Representative Houlahan for her leadership on this crucial issue for our community.”

“Now is the time for Congress to come together to resolve the under-investment in infrastructure systems and support a new funding structure to ensure adequate investments in a comprehensive, fully integrated system incorporating all modes of surface transportation, including restoring passenger rail to Reading,” said Gail Landis, Senior Vice President of the Greater Reading Chamber of Commerce.

“Civil engineers are vital to everyday life as we know it - everything we take for granted, such as clean water, mobility and safe structures, are provided through the services of civil engineers,” said Robert Wright, Project Manager at McMahon Associates on behalf of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

Rep. Houlahan sent a letter outlining her priorities to the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. Full text of that letter can be found here.

Houlahan is an Air Force veteran, an engineer, a serial entrepreneur, an educator, and a nonprofit leader. She’s in her first term representing Pennsylvania’s 6th Congressional District, which encompasses Chester County and southern Berks County. She serves on the House Armed Services Committee, the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and the House Small Business Committee.

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