Highway, Street & Bridge Construction NAICS 237310

Mar 17, 2026 - Industry Insiders Stress Need for New Highway Bill

• Construction industry leaders are urging swift action on the next federal highway bill as the current authorization under the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act expires September 30, according to Construction Dive. Congressional committees are drafting a bipartisan reauthorization, expected to span five years and potentially total about $550 billion, with a focus on roads, bridges, transit, and rail, along with permitting reforms and a proposed electric vehicle fee to support the Highway Trust Fund. Industry groups warn that failure to pass a bill on time would create uncertainty for infrastructure projects and equipment investment. Key challenges include limited legislative time, a projected $280 billion Highway Trust Fund shortfall by 2034, and the need for bipartisan support in a divided Congress. Construction leaders say a long-term, fully funded bill would provide stability and sustain demand across the sector.
• State transportation agencies are increasingly adopting high-resolution dashcam imagery and other on-vehicle tools to monitor road assets and guide maintenance, according to Engineering News-Record. Alabama’s DOT is now using Bentley Systems’ Blyncsy platform, which crowdsources dashcam images and applies AI with 97% accuracy to assess conditions such as guardrails, signage, and striping. Bentley says more than 80% of DOTs have deployed or are considering the technology, and Hawaii’s DOT has already cut guardrail inspection times through its program. Ohio’s DOT is testing Blyncsy alongside LIDAR and Honda-provided sensors in a pilot with the University of Cincinnati, reducing duplicate trips and consolidating inspections across 49,000 lane miles. Early tests revealed some inconsistencies, but officials expect improved accuracy in the next phase and are exploring real-time crowdsourcing as connected-vehicle partnerships expand.

• Slower growth in highway, street, and bridge construction spending could affect demand for asphalt products used in road construction. North American construction and engineering spending for roadway projects is expected to grow by 1% in 2026 after slowing an estimated 1% in 2025, according to FMI’s first-quarter 2026 North American Engineering and Construction Outlook. Highway and bridge projects will progress in 2026 as funding through the Biden-era Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act matures. Spending on bridges has risen amid $5 billion in additional funding from the Federal Highway Administration for deficient bridges, but pavement spending has dropped. While surface transportation reauthorization is likely to come before the end of fiscal 2026 in September, the timing and amounts of funding remain uncertain.
• US tariff policy pushed up prices for some construction inputs in 2025, according to an Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) analysis of US Bureau of Labor Statistics data. Overall, inputs to nonresidential construction - which includes highway, street, and bridge construction - increased 3.2% in December 2025 compared to a year earlier. Price increases for inputs used in highway, street, and bridge construction were mixed. Price growth was muted for concrete products (up 2% year-over-year in December 2025) and prepared asphalt, tar roofing, and siding products (+0.6%). However, prices for hot-rolled steel bars, plates, and structural shapes increased 12.1% in December 2025 compared with a year earlier, and construction sand, gravel, and crushed stone prices rose 6.1%. ABC Chief Economist Anirban Basu said, " Construction materials prices posted a welcome decline in December, yet key inputs are still experiencing rapid escalation. This is especially true for materials most exposed to tariffs." Basu added, "Prices for commodities less exposed to tariffs, like asphalt or crushed stone, will likely remain tame in the coming months due to soft demand for construction services. While that may limit increases in overall materials prices, trade policy will continue to put upward pressure on certain materials."