Max Baucus: “The most important point is one the Senator from West Virginia has so correctly made. We have tremendous transportation…”

“The most important point is one the Senator from West Virginia has so correctly made. We have tremendous transportation infrastructure needs, and that they are not being met. Indeed, the Department of Transportation has concluded under the current highway program we need about $15 billion a year in additional spending to meet our highway needs. And these investments help us compete globally. It is this competition that has helped us reach the economic growth we have today. But we have to invest more in the engine of the economy, our transportation network. Other nation's are investing more in infrastructure in order to catch up to us. If you look at what other countries spend on infrastructure, Japan is four times as a percentage of GDP and Europe twice as much as we do. Just look around the D.C. area. Anybody who drives around here, with all the pot holes and congestion, knows how much we need to improve the highways in this country.”