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Texas DOT

A survey released by the National Association of Manufacturers said��industry leaders��think roads in the United States are getting worse and transportation infrastructure needs to improve.

Of the more than 400 leaders of manufacturing firms surveyed, 70% said roads are getting worse, while 70% also said U.S. infrastructure is generally in “fair or poor” shape, said NAM, which commissioned the survey. Roads had the worst reviews in the survey, and smaller portions of the respondents said other modes of infrastructure, such as water, rail and aviation, are deteriorating.

“This survey clearly demonstrates that our nation’s approach to investing in infrastructure is not improving at a pace to keep up with the growing needs of manufacturers and that the United States risks falling behind,” Jay Timmons, CEO of NAM, said in a Sept. 17 statement. Timmons announced the survey at the Port of Philadelphia along with Ed Rendell, co-chairman of Building America’s Future and former governor of Pennsylvania.

“Improving our ports, highways and bridges is essentially an economic driver,” Rendell said in the statement. “Modernized ports and transportation systems enable American manufacturers and businesses to export their goods to countries around the world, which strengthens our economy here at home.”