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Which bridges need to be fixed first?
Apr 9, 2021

Which bridges need to be fixed first?

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President Biden said last week that plans for infrastructure spending include a group of 10 of the most economically significant bridges in need of reconstruction. But which 10 are they? Plus, an update on the vote count for unionization efforts at the Amazon warehouse in Alabama. Also, explaining Britain's international travel restrictions. And, a disconnect in the current labor market.

Segments From this episode

Explaining the disconnect between a strong March hiring report and all of the people still filing for unemployment

“When you add all of the numbers up, there are still 17.5 million people receiving unemployment benefits,” said Christopher Low, chief economist at FHN Financial. That’s historically high. And it’s despite a very positive employment report for March that we got last week. So we shouldn’t get carried away. “The employment report doesn’t capture everybody,” Low said. “It misses, particularly, people working in the lowest-paid industries, because many of those are in fact falling under the self-employment or part-time categories. And it’s clear: There are millions and millions of people still out of work. Until we can fully reopen the economy, we need to worry about that. They need to be taken care of.”

Is your bridge bad enough to get infrastructure money?

Apr 9, 2021
President Biden's plan calls for fixing 20,000 miles of roads and 10,000 bridges. But which are most in need?
One bridge in the worst shape? The Brent Spence Bridge, which spans the Ohio River and was declared functionally obsolete in the 1990s.
Jeff Dean/AFP via Getty Images

Music from the episode

Waves Joey Bada$$

The team

Victoria Craig Host, BBC
Stephen Ryan Senior Producer, BBC
Jonathan Frewin Producer, BBC
Daniel Shin Producer
Jay Siebold Technical Director
Meredith Garretson Morbey Senior Producer
Alex Schroeder Producer
Erika Soderstrom Producer
Rose Conlon Producer
Brian Allison Technical Director