Pointing to Concord’s deteriorating Sewalls Falls Bridge, U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster has called on House Speaker John Boehner to pass a long-term reauthorization of the Highway Trust Fund and other surface transportation programs before the end of this year.

The nearly 100-year-old bridge will close Dec. 1, and the city council has voted to demolish and replace it. That $10 million job would be paid for with $8 million in federal money, but the project has been delayed as the federal government struggles to find money for highway projects.

In a letter to Boehner dated Sept. 18, Kuster called the Sewalls Falls Bridge “a critical transportation link.”

“This is just one example of why the Highway Trust Fund is so important to New Hampshire and communities across our country,” Kuster wrote. “Without reliable funding, we will continue to see our transportation infrastructure degrade, jeopardizing our public safety and hurting our economy.”

Kuster and U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen toured the bridge last fall and pushed to secure the federal money for the bridge’s replacement.