In the linked article it says:
"Gov. Martin O’Malley said Sunday that the economic stimulus approved by Congress in 2009 didn’t go far enough and he called for new investments in infrastructure … to spur job growth."
1. If government spends money on anything it "spurs job growth" but that’s not the real point here is it?
2. NEW infrastructure zaps wealth, it does not create it. Emphasis on creating new over repair and maintenance of existing infrastructure is like buying new dishes instead of washing the old ones. It costs more money to always be buying new things so it must be good for the economy, right? As I said, new infrastructure zaps wealth, in this case it zaps money that would be better spent elsewhere.
3. Maryland with the 4th highest pedestrian fatality rate on roads that have little to no thought about pedestrian safety and the emphasis should be on building more unsafe roads like what we have? We should be spending money on getting our roads to safely accommodate everyone rather then "it’s good for the economy to be killing people on our roads so long as cars get to go really fast."
4. Letting roads go to such disrepair actually costs government more to fix them then if they kept them in good repair in the first place.
5. Roads in such disrepair damages the vehicles that use such poor roads. Costing each and every motor vehicle owner thousands (and I have quite a few broken spokes as well from pot holes.) But I guess maintaining poor roads "creates" wealth for someone else at your expense.
6. All this misplaced "need" for new roads when Americans are driving less and taking mass transit more (and even biking more) is just wrong. Report after report says there are more jobs per dollar spent if spent on bike facilities or even mass transit then building new roads. Even reports from O’Malley’s own state say this but is he even listening to his own state? Apparently this "stimulus" spending is not about new jobs after all.
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https://weblogs.baltimoresun.com/news/local/politics/2011/08/omalley_and_mcdonnell_discuss.htmloldId.20110822184405472
Biking in Baltimore