Fixing Massachusetts' InfrastructureIn today's world, people are looking for ways to improve their quality of life and the environment around them. These ways can be as simple as recycling or as important as improving infrastructure. One of the biggest issues in recent years has been the state of Massachusetts' infrastructure, which received a cumulative "D" grade in 2009 by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE). By planning, designing and undertaking new projects, engineers have responded to an endless amount of problems with current infrastructure. Massachusetts, although it has made many efforts in the past to repair its crumbling infrastructure, still has a very long way to go before it achieves an acceptable rating. Although it comes at a cost, the state can repair every section of its infrastructure, including transit, utilities, and bridges, by raising standards, properly funding projects, and planning and designing itself. even the infrastructure. Will Massachusetts be able to repair its rapidly crumbling infrastructure, including public transportation, utilities and bridges, over the next decade? Introduction to the Industry Massachusetts' infrastructure, while not the worst in the country, is in desperate need of attention. Public transportation systems, utilities and bridges are collapsing and causing major problems across the state. In 2009 and 2013, the state received an overall grade point average of "D," and engineers and state officials, like Deval Patrick, and national leaders, like Barack Obama, have made many efforts to improve the state infrastructure. Deval Patrick has released several state bills to improve m...... middle of paper ....... Govern. January 16, 2013. Speech. November 21, 2013. Ring, Dan. “Report: Nearly 10% of Massachusetts Bridges Are Structurally Deficient.” The Republican. masslive, June 19, 2013. Web. December 10, 2013. Ritholtz, Barry. "Fixing Infrastructure Can Help Fix the Economy | Overview." ritholtz.com. The Big Picture, July 4, 2013. Web. October 20, 2013. “Smarter Cities.” A smarter planet. Np, and Web. December 6, 2013. “Warren Urges America to Be More Like China.” » Newsmax July 31, 2012. General OneFile. Internet. November 21, 2013. Wical, Robert. Total energy independence of the United States. New York: iUniverse, 2007. Print. “www.engineers.org”. Raising the Standard in Massachusetts. BSCES, sd PDF file. November 20. 2013.