150,000 U.S. bridges are rated "deficient"
About 25 percent of the U.S. bridges remain “structurally deficient” or “functionally obsolete”; the deterioration of bridges in the United States is the direct result of a confluence of three developments: the system is aging; the costs of maintaining bridges is high; and traffic on these bridges is steadily increasing
"Structurally deficient" needs to be more accurately defined // Source: pennlive.com
Nearly three years after the Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis collapsed, 25 percent of the U.S. bridges remain “structurally deficient” or “functionally obsolete,” according to testimony at a House Transportation Subcommittee hearing last Wednesday.
“It’s only a matter of time before it’s another one in the river,” said Representative Tim Walz (D Minnesota). “Are we doing enough to have an honest discussion with the American public of what it’s going to cost to replace and repair and keep our bridges up to where they need to be for safety?”
Minneapolis-St. Paul Star-Tribune’s Jeremy Herb writes that the hearing examined funding levels and bridge improvements, as well as the frequency and adequacy of inspections of the U.S. highway bridges.
The number of deficient bridges has declined by nearly 12 percent since 1998, but about 150,000 bridges — nearly one in four — still are considered deficient, according to the latest data from the Federal Highway Administration (FHA).
The overall drop can be attributed to improvements in local and rural bridges, according to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), but the number of deficient bridges in urban areas has increased 11 percent since 1998.
Herb notes that in Minnesota, 12 percent of 13,131 bridges are considered structurally deficit or functionally obsolete. In 1998, 18 percent of 12,614 state bridges were in those categories.
A bridge termed structurally deficient or functionally obsolete may not collapse tomorrow, but its is substandard.
The deterioration of bridges in the United States is the direct result of a confluence of three developments: the system is aging; the costs of maintaining bridges is high; and traffic on these bridges is steadily increasing.
Malcolm Kerley, the Virginia Department of Transportation’s chief engineer, said Wednesday. “We’re facing a perfect storm regarding our bridges,” he said.
Representative Jim Oberstar (D-Minnesota), chairman of the committee, said states are not dedicating enough money to addressing bridge problems. “The current law gives states the authority to transfer up to 50 percent of their bridge funds to other purposes,” Oberstar said. “And they’ve done it. And then they turn around and complain they don’t have enough money for bridge replacement.”
