Energy Economy Boom negatively impacts North Dakota roads.
Press Release Summary:
North Dakota is experiencing an economic boom due to US Geological Survey estimate from April 2008, which proclaimed presence of millions of barrels of recoverable crude oil. Two Minute State DOT Update featured North Dakota DoT Director Francis Ziegler, who commented that this is good news. He also noted that roads which "were in great shape" had 2 or 3 in. ruts in them 2 months later due to travel of oil crews. More investment will be needed, Ziegler said, for upkeep of roads and bridges.
Original Press Release:
Booming Energy Economy Impacting Condition of North Dakota Roads
(Washington DC) - Contrary to the financial woes many states are experiencing, North Dakota is in the midst of an economic boom. One of the nation's largest wind farms is located in the state. In addition, according to the most recent U.S. Geological Survey estimate from April 2008. Literally millions of barrels of undiscovered, technically recoverable crude oil are in North Dakota. As a result, experts predict this alone could keep the economy humming for the next 20 years.
In a new Two Minute State DOT Update video, North Dakota Department of Transportation Director Francis Ziegler says that's the good news.
"Oil crews are working in areas where they are drilling three or four wells in one spot and it can take up to 2,000 vehicles to service a single well," says Ziegler. "When you add it up, we're putting a lot of wear and tear on the state's existing roads and bridges."
Ziegler says the big concern is in the oil-rich western section of North Dakota. A December 2010 study conducted by the North Dakota State University's Upper Great Plains Transportation Institute forecast the road investment needs for 17 oil-and-gas-producing counties during the next 20 years. The study determined that in the past five years, oil production in North Dakota has more than doubled from approximately 3,300 wells prior to 2005 to 5,200 active wells in 2010. The study forecast investment needs for all roads in those counties amounted to $907 million, or roughly $45 million annually over the 2011-30 period.
"We had roads that were in great shape and two months later we had two- or three-inch ruts in them. And so we're realizing we're going to need a lot more investment," Ziegler says.
Find out more about this issue as well as what the North Dakota DOT is doing to bring down the number of crossover crashes, especially on rural roads, by watching the full video at www.transportationtv.org.
The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) is the "Voice of Transportation" representing State Departments of Transportation in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. AASHTO is a nonprofit, nonpartisan association serving as a catalyst for excellence in transportation. Follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/aashtospeaks
