The American Society of Civil Engineers graded the US infrastructure a C, in its report, 2025 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure.
And that grade is higher than the C- it received in 2021, the year the last report was released.
The group notes that the “report Card grades show that U.S. infrastructure is trending in the right direction thanks to comprehensive support, innovative solutions, and bold leadership.”
While the report covered many areas, this article will focus on ports and rail. (Excerpted from report.)
Ports received a grade B
Ports, an essential component of the U.S. economy, supports $2.89 trillion in GDP. The ports sector continues to adjust to the disruptions brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused an initial decline in containerized imports followed by a surge due to an increase in consumer-driven economic activity.
U.S. ports support more than 21.8 million jobs, including maritime industry professionals and suppliers.
Recent federal investments nearly doubled annual funding levels for programs such as the Port Infrastructure Development Program to $450 million per fiscal year, allowing America’s ports to more robustly assess, balance, and address their waterside and landside needs.
Meanwhile, ports are increasingly contending with the current and future impacts of extreme weather events, which present uniquechallenges to their coastal facilities that are susceptible to sea level rise.
America's ports handled 743 million tons of cargo in 2023
Ports have $38 billion in future needs between 2024 and 2033
Low water levels can delay the movement of goods
Condition & Capacity
The nation’s ports handled 41.5% (or $2.1 trillion) of U.S. international trade by value in 2023. Furthermore, approximately 743 million tons of cargo, or 15%, of domestic freight is carried by water and must move through the nation’s ports.
Funding & Future Need
Federal, state, local, and private sector funding support port infrastructure. Waterside infrastructure needs, such as maintenance dredging, are paid for through the federal Harbor Maintenance Trust Fund (HMTF). The HMTF collects revenue through a 0.125% user fee on the value of the cargo shipped. Although intended specifically for maintenance dredging, the fund has also been used for other port infrastructure purposes. The Water Resources Development Act (WRDA) of 2020 included full utilization of the $10 billion balance of the HMTF by allowing $500 million to be appropriated in Fiscal Year 2021, with an increase of $100 million annually until 2030.
Operation & Maintenance
U.S. port governance is unique because there is no national port authority. Rather, authority is dispersed through federal, state, and local levels of government. Some ports are privately owned and operated, whereas government authorities manage others. Port authorities are government entities that either own or administer the land, facilities, and adjacent bodies of water where cargo is transferred between modes. Port authorities manage the infrastructure within ports, including docks, terminals, and storage facilities. At the federal level, the USACE is responsible for deepening and maintaining federal shipping channels to keep them safe and navigable.
Innovation
Many recent examples of port innovation stem from efforts to cut emissions. The maritime sector requires vast amounts of energy for vessel propulsion, ground transport, cargo handling equipment, and electricity generation. Some ports have embraced innovation, such as the electrification of equipment, to comply with air quality mandates and reduce emissions. The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach use shore power, which allows vessels to connect to the electrical grid while berthed instead of relying on their engines for power. Shutting down their engines reduces air pollution, improving air quality in the port area and surrounding communities.
Rail got a B-
The U.S. rail network consists of approximately 140,000 miles of track and serves freight and passenger services. Freight rail supports the movement of 1.5 billion tons of goods annually.
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) authorized $66 billion for rail projects from Fiscal Year 2022 to 2026, making vital improvements such as intercity passenger rail service expansion, Amtrak corridor development, and road–rail crossing grade separation possible.
Train safety incidents show a promising long-term trend, down 23% in the 23 years from 2000 to 2023, but recent incidents like 2023’s derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, raise concerns and is just one of 10,577 incidents that year.
Recent programs and actions implemented by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) can improve the rail network, which calls for a balance between modern advancements in the sector, such as precision-scheduled railroading, and sufficient staffing to ensure public safety.
Freight rail car cargo weight increased by nearly 40% between 2000 and 2022
The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act includes $66 billion in rail infrastructure funding over 5 years
Every $1 invested in project upgrades achieves $4 in cost savings that would have been spent to address failures
Condition & Capacity
Freight rail companies own and maintain their own infrastructure, while U.S. passenger rail consists of Amtrak and commuter rail systems that transport riders from suburban communities to dense urban centers.
Funding & Future Need
Freight rail companies in the U.S. invest an average of 18.4% ($23 billion) of their revenue on capital expenditures annually. Class I railroads do not report an unfunded need or deferred maintenance. Short line railroads specifically invest 25% of their annual revenue in Operation and Maintenance.
Operation & Maintenance
Competing interests between freight and passenger rail unfortunately continues to pose ongoing operational challenges. For 2023, Amtrak reports issues with on-time performance (OTP), showing an overall 74.4% OTP for customers. Federal law requires freight railroad dispatching to prioritize Amtrak trains over freight, but the agency contends this is often ignored and results in lower OTP. Freight and passenger rail can benefit from partnerships to improve track sharing and avoid delays such as the Chicago Region Environmental and Transportation Efficiency Program.
Resilience & Innovation
Rail lines face considerable threats from extreme weather, making resilience a key priority for future projects. In 2024 alone, Hurricane Helene damaged to rail lines in the Southeast, while rising waters caused the collapse of a rail bridge over the Big Sioux River between South Dakota and Iowa, and excessive heat along the Northeast Corridor delayed Amtrak trains due to fires and speed restrictions.
Improvement Still Needed
The report notes that, unfortunately, while significant advancements are being made, we still face a substantial investment gap. The shortfall grows as existing infrastructure systems continue to age and demands on those systems increase. In addition, passage of the IIJA has shed light on key issues affecting our industry. Projects should be modernized or replaced by prioritizing resilience to withstand extreme weather. Resiliencefocused measures may add to upfront costs but save on sudden, less predictable, and large financial impacts from disaster-related damages. Infrastructure projects take a long time to develop, and stakeholders may hesitate to pursue resilient designs without assurances that current funding levels will be sustained in the future. These are just a few of the challenges we continue to face."
Trends
The report highlights several trends:
Aging infrastructure systems are increasingly vulnerable to natural disasters and extreme weather events, creating unexpected and often avoidable risks to public safety and the economy. Climate-related challenges are widespread, affecting even regions previously resistant to these events: floods become more intense and occur more often, hurricanes create higher wind loads, and wildfires encroach more unpredictably. Investments in resilient infrastructure are consistently proven to be an effective use of limited public dollars, because they reduce costs in the long term, especially by minimizing rebuilding needs after a significant event. For instance, by adopting the most up-to-date codes and standards, communities will be better equipped to handle disasters and more responsibly deploy public resources.
Recent federal and state investments have had a positive impact, but the full force of increased funding will take years to realize. Sustained investment is key to providing certainty and ensuring planning goes to development, as well as making larger infrastructure projects attainable. Before recent federal legislation, like 2021’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), many of our infrastructure networks had been neglected for decades at the federal level. As time passed and investments failed to keep pace with demands, the backlog of maintenance projects grew. Meanwhile, demands on infrastructure systems have intensified apart from maintenance. Community expansion and usage trends, economic growth, unpredictable events, and new technologies have called for new plans and project design. These raised stakes require the federal government to continue prioritizing infrastructure investments. Therefore, federal decision-makers will need to preserve momentum from continued partnerships with state and local governments that match investments and facilitate planning. Considering the extensive time it takes to study, design, and complete projects, sustained investment at current or higher funding levels will be necessary for infrastructure to continue to improve
Unreliable or unavailable data on key performance indicators continues to impact certain infrastructure sectors. Sectors like school facilities, broadband, energy, levees, stormwater, and public parks continue to lack extensive public data. Robust information on asset conditions, capacity, operations, safety, or resilience enables proactive public discussion on infrastructure. Many infrastructure categories lack a basic inventory of assets and therefore are unable to implement asset management practices. Data—publicly available, routine, and reliable—should be standard across all infrastructure sectors to target investments and allow decision-makers to wisely allocate limited funding to needs. Through enhanced data, both efficiency and effectiveness of assets can be better achieved.
