Biden hails US infrastructure cash bonanza

Biden hails US infrastructure cash bonanza

WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden announced Wednesday a deal with senators on a massive infrastructure package that would pump historic levels of federal funding into fixing US roads, bridges and waterways and expand clean energy programs. The bipartisan measure, including some $550 billion in new spending, came together after two months of often-tense negotiations that Biden and his Democrats wanted to see concluded before Congress breaks for its August recess.

The deal will create millions of good jobs and make the US economy more robust, sustainable, resilient and just, the White House said in a statement. Biden called it "the most significant long-term investment in our infrastructure and competitiveness in nearly a century."

"This deal signals to the world that our democracy can function, deliver, and do big things," he said, adding that the plan had the potential to "transform America and propel us into the future." The deal will make the largest-ever federal investments in public transit and drinking and waste water infrastructure; the largest funding of passenger rail since the creation of Amtrak; and the largest investment in bridges since creation of the nation's highway system.

It also helps tackle the climate crisis by investing historic amounts in clean energy projects