While the city you may be in may seem as though its infrastructure is in good shape, you may be in for a bit of a surprise. The average U.S. city has only a limited fiber optic loop driving connectivity. Telephone and cable still come across outdated copper wires and electricity is still prone to go out in a rainstorm. Of course there are places that are further advanced then others; the utilities are underground and safe from the elements and their fiber optic network is pretty good, but there is still more that needs to be done.
In countries all over the world, infrastructure can be substantially worse in some areas but better in others. Take the developing country of the Philippines for example. They have one of the scariest looking infrastructures in the world, yet almost 90% of their internet is delivered by fiber optics to within only a few miles from the end user. Yet when you look at their roads, you see nothing but potholes and when it drizzles outside the power goes out. Wires go everywhere on the poles and there is absolutely no unification in how the utility poles are ran.
Everywhere in the world though is in for a big change. This change is an infrastructure boom. The reason for this is that when the infrastructure is put into place, while they may have been using the latest technology at the time, upgrading it can be expensive. This is why there is still so much copper being used for phone and internet in the states while countries like Korea deliver internet completely by fiber optic connections.
Furthermore, the vast majority of infrastructure is controlled by the governments or government organizations. What this means exactly is that with the economic crisis felt around the world and the government dumping billions into their economy, they can only do so much without seeing actual results. There will be greater spending on infrastructure as a means of reducing unemployment rates. However this may not be the same in every country.
All in all though, the infrastructure boom is in full swing and will not be stopping anytime soon. As long as their is old and outdated technology, there will be revamping of it. Countries which still use copper for phone and internet will be making their way into fiber optics, the latest technologies in road construction will start seeing its way on to the motorways of the world and a whole lot more. Remember, infrastructure is basically everything we see around us from roads and bridges to sewer, electricity, communication and anything for that matter which connects us from one person to another or one place to another.