“Congress: Fix Our Infrastructure Problem Now.” That’s the key message of a new ad campaign urging Congress and the Trump administration to develop and pass this year a robust transportation infrastructure investment package and a permanent fix for the Highway Trust Fund (HTF).
The ad campaign, developed by the Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) and Americans for Transportation Mobility (ATM), began with an opinion piece in Politico asking the nation’s leaders for a renewed commitment to “invest financially in America’s transportation infrastructure.” The piece also features digital ads that connect to the TCC’s website.
To call attention to America’s transportation challenges, the piece cites examples of deteriorating bridges and roadways that were forced to close recently in northern California, outside Boston and in downtown Chicago. It also highlights a Jan. 23-24 Rasmussen Reports poll that found nearly 90 percent of likely voters “believe Democrats and President Trump should work together in 2019 to pass legislation that would improve… infrastructure.”
The two-month campaign will culminate in a 30-second television spot (“Stuck”) that begins airing in May in Washington, D.C., in the run up to the TCC’s Washington fly-in and National Infrastructure Week.
The digital and TV ads outline the groups’ top two priorities:
Priority 1: Provide an expanded and sustainable way to pay for future Highway Trust Fund supported investments that keep pace with our nation’s growing infrastructure.
Priority 2: Expand Trust Fund resources for projects that ease traffic congestion, improve safety and support long-term economic growth.
The opinion piece concludes: “A generational opportunity to turn blueprints and big thinking into a 21st century infrastructure network stands before us. Congress and the president need to get moving.”