National Highway Bridge Reconstruction and Inspection act of 2008
NATIONAL HIGHWAY BRIDGE RECONSTRUCTION AND INSPECTION ACT OF 2008 -- (House of Representatives - July 23, 2008)
Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Madam Chairman, my amendment is very simple, very straightforward. I will just take a few minutes to explain it. But it deals with the issue of how, as our Nation undertakes critical bridge reconstruction, that we make sure to use the very newest and the best technology available in our construction methods.
Specifically, I am talking about carbon fiber, which is a very, very lightweight material. It is sturdier. It is less susceptible to corrosion, and it actually is more durable than steel.
Right now we use steel rerods in bridge construction, and regular steel rerods can take up to 60,000 pounds per square inch. But carbon fiber rods, like this one that I hold in my hand, can actually take up to 240,000 pounds per square inch. That makes it actually four to five times stronger than steel. As well, it is 8 times lighter than steel, making it very much, much easier to transport and install as well.
Also, steel fatigues from the pressure of repetitive use, and carbon fiber does not. By using carbon fiber, in addition to some of the new strength concretes that are out there, I think we could conceivably build a 100-year sustainable structure.
In my home State of Michigan, we have already built one bridge using carbon fiber technology, and we are planning on building and reconstruction of three more bridges during the next 2 years.
Madam Chairman, my amendment directs the Secretary of Transportation to study the cost benefits of using carbon fiber composite materials and that technology. And then it would require the findings of the study to be returned to the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, as well as to the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee within 180 days of the bill that we are discussing tonight, within 180 days of the enactment of this bill. This would give Congress adequate time to review those findings and to determine if it would be appropriate to incorporate any action related to the findings into next year's highway reauthorization bill.
So I would ask my colleagues to support this amendment.
I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mrs. MILLER of Michigan. Madam Chairman, I certainly appreciate the chairman's words.
And in Michigan we like to think we are on the leading edge of all kinds of technology. And carbon fiber is one thing, but as the chairman knows, we also have the first mile of concrete ever laid in the United States, in the city limits of Detroit, about Six Mile Road. So we like to think of ourselves as ahead of the curve.
But I will close by saying that I certainly enjoy serving on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. And one of the principal reasons I enjoy the work so much is because of the leadership and the vision of our chairman. He is certainly internationally recognized as a leader on transportation and infrastructure issues, as well as our ranking member. And so I appreciate that.
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