Like many other developed countries, Canada invests billions of dollars a year to repair, upgrade and expand its public infrastructure. Whether it involves paving roads, renovating bridges or upgrading sewer and water systems, all levels of governments and the private sector work together to ensure that Canada's public infrastructure is safe and meets the needs of a growing population and economy.
This study sheds light on the age1 status and trends of five key public infrastructures from a provincial perspective, and compares average ages with the useful life of each infrastructure.
Five public assets are covered in this study: highways and roads, bridges and overpasses, water supply systems, wastewater treatment facilities and sanitary and storm sewers. Gross stock in these assets amounted to $286.2 billion in 2007, 5.3% more than in 2001. Combined, they accounted for more than 80% of all engineering infrastructure owned by federal, provincial and municipal governments in 2007.
This study found that since 2001, the average age of public infrastructure in Canada has been falling almost steadily. In 2007, it reached 16.3 years, down from its peak of 17.5 seven years earlier. This rejuvenating trend was fuelled by large investments in highways and roads in Quebec and Ontario. A reduction in the average age is indicative of a general trend toward younger stock of investments. It doesn't imply necessarily that each physical asset is younger or in better conditions or that a greater proportion of assets meets specific quality standards.
In 2007, the average age of the five public infrastructure assets was higher than the national average in all provinces east of Ontario, except Prince Edward Island where infrastructure on average was a relatively young 15.5 years, thanks to the Confederation Bridge. Infrastructure was also older than the national average in Manitoba and Saskatchewan while Alberta and Ontario showed the reverse. The average age in British Columbia was equal to the national average.
Highways and roads, the largest component of the five public assets, were worth $170.1 billion in 2007, representing 59% of the total. The average age of roads in Canada increased steadily since the beginning of the 1970s to a peak of 16.9 years in 1994; by 2007, it had shortened to 14.9 years. Since 2001, the average age of roads has diminished in all provinces, except Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador. Quebec alone accounted for more than half the drop during the six-year period.
Bridges and overpasses accounted for 8% of total public assets in 2007. Unlike roads however, investments in bridges have been under the level required to hold their age constant. Hence, the average age of this asset rose by 3.2 years from 21.3 in 1985 to 24.5 in 2007. Bridges have a mean service life of 43.3 years. This means that Canada's bridges have passed 57% of their useful life, compared with 53% for roads. The ratio for bridges was the second highest of the five assets, after wastewater treatment infrastructures. It hit 66% in Nova Scotia and 72% in Quebec.
Water supply systems, including pumping and filtration stations, saw their average age diminish from 16.9 years in 2001 to a record low of 14.8 years in 2007. This rejuvenating trend was pushed by large investments, especially in British Columbia, Ontario and Alberta. These provinces recorded also strong growth in their urban population during the period.
Unlike other public infrastructure assets, Canada's stock of wastewater treatment plants has declined by 1.1% a year on average from 2001 to 2007. The decline spread across most provinces, except Nova Scotia and Alberta. As a result, the average age edged up from 17.4 to 17.8 years. Wastewater treatment assets have passed 63% of their useful life in 2007, the highest ratio among the five public infrastructure assets.
The stock of sanitary and storm sewers has increased 1.0% a year on average since 2001. However, this growth rate was not large enough to reverse the ageing trend of this asset, the average age of which reached a record high of 17.9 years in 2007. The average age of sewers grew slightly in all provinces, except Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta.
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1. For readability, when average ages of gross capital stock invested in public infrastructures are discussed in this paper, technical terms are omitted and references are made to average ages of public infrastructures.