Blueprint America

America?s infrastructure is in decay. In recent years, its neglect has been seen across the country.

Levees broke beginning on August 29, 2005, as a result of Hurricane Katrina, flooding roughly 80 percent of New Orleans.

On July 11, 2006, a 200-foot section of a Boston tunnel collapsed, killing a newlywed woman.
A steam pipe explosion near Grand Central Terminal in New York City killed one and wounded 20 others on July 18, 2007.

And less than a month later, on August 1, the I-35W Bridge over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis collapsed, 13 people were killed and over 100 were injured.

These are not isolated events. Nor are they representative of the whole problem. America?s infrastructure in decay is not just rundown roads and rusted railways. It is also the condition of the pipelines that supply water and of the power lines, telephone lines and Internet lines above and below the ever-increasingly unstable ground Americans stand. It is uncontrolled suburban sprawl, endless traffic jams, overcrowded airports and choked port terminals. It is a lack of public transit and other alternative means of transportation to get Americans from here to there.

Until now, water shortages, rolling brownouts and long waits in traffic and at the airport have been endured by Americans. But as these breakdowns become more frequent, and in the era of climate change and near $5.00 a gallon gasoline, Americans will have to face their country?s infrastructure challenges ? socially, economically and environmentally ? or place both their quality of life and ability to compete in a global economy at risk.

As a new President and Congress will soon be elected, the country will also choose a new direction for its infrastructure ? to address the problems of growth and sustainability of the American standard of living.

In response, Thirteen/ WNET ? with major funding from the Rockefeller Foundation ? will present Blueprint America, a multi-platform public broadcasting initiative examining infrastructure issues throughout America and the rest of the world. Over the next year, programming under the Blueprint America umbrella will include:

- Individual reports produced in partnership with The NewsHour with Jim Lehrer, NOW, Worldfocus, Expos? on Bill Moyers Journal, local PBS stations across the country, and Public Radio
- Original, primetime documentaries produced for national broadcast on PBS
- Educational and community outreach to integrate study and debate on this subject into schools and community groups
- An interactive website that will serve as a platform for debate, an aggregator of print and video content, and ?virtual meetinghouse? for citizens to share stories, videos and information concerning infrastructure in their cities and towns

Join Blueprint America on PBS and Public Radio Stations throughout the country.