ConExpo-Con/Agg — the largest trade show in North America — kicked off its 2023 show at the Las Vegas Convention Center and Festival Grounds on Tuesday.
This is the first ConExpo/Agg since President Biden signed the bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) into law.
The morning began with press conferences inside, demonstrations outside, and a lot of networking (not to mention walking – the show commands more than 2.7 million square feet of space).
However, one could argue that the most important event of the first day was an educational session titled, “Show Me the Money! Where is All the Infrastructure Money Going?”
Presented by Dr. Alison Black, senior vice president and chief economist at the American Road and Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA), a full room of attendees were shown graphs and charts that explained how the money in the bipartisan infrastructure law is dispersed.
Black had three key points she wanted the attendees to leave with:
- The IIJA is working.
- We’re at the beginning of the process of enacting this law — and it’s going to be a long process.
- The law, and how the money is used, will look different in each state.
Black ended her presentation by addressing inflation. She said that the economic outlook has improved over the past six months.
“It looks different by region and in different communities,” she said.
Black also acknowledged that inflation has made it a challenge to pay for labor, as well as buy equipment and materials.
“But I’m confident we’ll get it done,” she said. “I’m always optimistic about the ability of our industry.”
Roads & Bridges interviewed Black after her presentation. Look for that interview and others this week, as our editorial team covers ConExpo/Agg with a series of videos from Las Vegas. R&B
About the Author
Gavin Jenkins, Head of Content
Head of Content
Gavin Jenkins is an award-winning journalist based in Pittsburgh. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic, VICE, Narrative.ly, Prevention, the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review and Beijing Review.
In 2020, two stories he wrote for Pitt Med Magazine earned three Golden Quill Awards from the Press Club of Western Pennsylvania. “Surviving Survival” won Excellence in Corporate, Marketing and Promotional Communications – Written, Medical/Health, while “Oct. 27, 2018: Pittsburgh’s Darkest Day, and the Mass Casualty Response” won Excellence in Written Journalism, Magazines – Medical/Health, as well as the Ray Sprigle Memorial Award: Magazines, a Best in Show award.
After graduating from the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown in 2003, he covered sports for the Bedford Gazette, in Bedford, Pa., and the Martinsville Bulletin, in Martinsville, Va. In 2006, he returned to Pittsburgh to write for Trib Total Media. Based out of the Kittanning Leader Times, he worked for the Trib for two years, and then he moved to Shenzhen, China, to teach English and freelance. After two years in China, he earned an MFA in nonfiction from the University of Pittsburgh.
When he's not at work, he's usually playing with his border-collie mix, Bob.