Few things directly impact the lives of Ohioans on a daily basis as much as our infrastructure. Each day, we rely on Ohio’s highways, airways, and railways to get us all the places we need to go. Similarly, the livelihood of Ohio’s businesses relies on sound infrastructure to transport materials, products, and workers.

Despite this, each of us wastes an average of one year of our lives sitting in traffic. Roads and bridges that haven’t been modernized in decades are crumbling around us. In the state of Ohio, 6.9% of all bridges are rated as structurally deficient, while 17% of public roads are in poor condition. Our communities continue to evolve and expand, yet our infrastructure network remains stuck in the past. It’s past time we update our infrastructure, bringing it into the 21st Century to adapt to modern life.

As a member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, I have a seat at the table to discuss the important transportation issues affecting Ohio. Investing our resources in improving our infrastructure can also lead to collateral benefits, such as jobs for Ohioans and reinvigorating the local economy. There are many reasons to upgrade and fortify our outdated infrastructure, and I’m committed to looking for solutions to our critical needs.