According to an analysis by the Federal Highway Administration, about 500,000 Americans would lose their jobs in fiscal year 2012 — just in the highway program alone.

Let’s look at the transportation related job losses nationwide under the Ryan budget. (charts with state-by-state data were shown)

Our long term prosperity also requires that we invest in our infrastructure. Our transportation systems used to be the best in the world, but investments have not kept up with the needs, and now we are falling behind.

According to a report by the Department of the Treasury and the Council of Economic Advisors, the United States currently spends 2 percent of GDP on infrastructure, a 50 percent decline from 1960. Meanwhile, China is spending close to 9 percent of their GDP on infrastructure.

A congressionally mandated report in 2008 called for investments of up to at least $225 billion annually over the next 50 years at all levels of government to bring our existing surface transportation infrastructure to a good state of repair. All combined, our States, cities and the Federal Government are spending 40 percent less than that amount.

The underinvestment in infrastructure has led to a crumbling transportation system. The American Society of Civil Engineers’ 2009 “Report Card for America’s Infrastructure” gave our nation’s infrastructure a “D.” A “D” is not the grade a world leader with an infrastructure system for the 21st Century would receive.

According to the Department of Transportation, over 50 percent of highway miles are traveled on roads in less than “good” condition and over 70,000 of our nation’s bridges are structurally deficient.