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OUTSOURCING DESIGN WORK ON TRANSPORTATION PROJECTS INCREASES
COSTS AND THREATENS PUBLIC SAFETY, ACCORDING TO REPORT
Highway Robbery II,
a new report from the National Association of State Highway and
Transportation Unions (NASHTU), details a growing array of
problems – high costs, reduced project safety, and loss of
public accountability -- resulting from state and local
transportation agencies outsourcing engineering, construction
inspection and project oversight on federally funded
transportation projects. A copy of the report is
attached.
Key Highway Robbery II findings
include:
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Outsourcing of design, inspection, and construction management
by departments of transportation – usually through no bid
contracts -- is significantly more expensive than doing the
work in-house.
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Outsourcing inspection and oversight has led to dangerous
construction defects, project delays, and overcharges.
Boston’s “Big Dig” is but one high profile example. In July
2006, a “Big Dig” tunnel collapsed killing a woman and
injuring her husband, substantially increasing costs, and
forcing several lengthy closures.
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Outsourcing in many states has become part of a budgetary
shell game in which public engineers are cut and replaced by
consultants at higher cost. As a result, states lose
experienced staff, fail to recruit and retain new engineering
and technical employees, and lose the ability to appropriately
design, inspect and oversee transportation projects.
To ensure that taxpayers receive safe, high quality
transportation services at the best possible price, the report
concludes with a call to Congress to enact “accountability in
contracting” provisions requiring state transportation
departments to perform cost-benefit studies before outsourcing
engineering work on federally funded projects. States should
also take steps to hold private contractors accountable for the
cost and quality of their work, the report adds.
Highway Robbery II
is an update of NASHTU’s highly regarded Highway Robbery,
published in 2002. The report was authored by David Kusnet, a
journalist and author whose work has appeared in the New York
Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and many other
publications. To discuss the report with a representative in
your state please call Ted Toppin at 916/446-0584 or email
toppin@nashtu.us.
NASHTU represents 38 unions and
associations from 20 states and the District of Columbia
representing hundreds of thousands of state and local
transportation department employees. To learn more about NASHTU,
please visit our website
www.nashtu.us. |
