We want to stress that we're not trying to alarm anyone and there is very little chance any of our bridges are going to fall down, but the fact remains that maintenance is a necessity and the funds to do it are very limited. What I'm getting at is that an alternative source to fund transportation maintenance is needed ASAP. Will that mean we have to quit building new roads or adding lanes to existing roads to pay for upkeep instead? It's a very real possibility. The state has shifted to a "fix it first" mentality, meaning the priority is now on maintenance rather than new construction.
- There are 377 bridges or "spans" in the County
- 21 are structurally deficient, or need repairs to decks, girders, etc.
- 65 are functionally obsolete, meaning they were built for the traffic of the past and may have weight restrictions as they can't support the monster semis of today.
- Being structurally deficient or functionally obsolete does NOT mean that those bridges are going to collapse anytime soon.
- 140 of the bridges were built before 1962 and are over 50 years old.
- Total estimated cost for bridge "improvements" is $1.9 billion.
2 comments:
I volunteer at both the Spokane Courthouse and also at the Spokane Public Library, and so I spent a lot of time walking between them. Before they rebuilt the Monroe Street Bridge, it shook a lot when a truck or a bus was on the bridge, now it seems to be very solid. So repairs can be made, and hopefully before another bridge falls down.
Have you ever walked across the Maple Street bridge? That one shakes like crazy and is generally unpleasant because people speed by at ridiculous speeds and it seems like the cars are really close, even though you're in a fenced in area.
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