I can't wait to see the Engineers break this one down and explain what happened.
its called lack of maintenance and upkeep, many many bridges and other various infrastructure in this country suffers from the same deal..........it isn't a priority in this country, victim of living in a disposable world that has other priorities
might take more than 20 years and a trillion bucks to fix everything
this was an article I just came across:
The deadly collapse of a road bridge in Minnesota has raised questions about America's aging infrastructure, with experts warning that billions need to be spent to bring standards up to scratch.
The American Society of Civil Engineers warned in a report two years ago that between 2000 and 2003, more than 27 percent of the nation's almost 600,000 bridges were rated as structurally deficient or functionally obsolete.
"It will cost 9.4 billion dollars a year for 20 years to eliminate all bridge deficiencies," the society said, adding that "long-term under-investment is compounded by the lack of a federal transportation program."
"America must change its transportation behavior, increase transportation investment at all levels of government, and make use of the latest technology," the society's wide-reaching "Report Card for America's Infrastructure" added.
The organization estimated that 1.6 trillion dollars needed to be spent over a five-year period to bring US infrastructure up to good condition.
Wednesday's deadly bridge collapse, which left four people dead and up to 30 missing, came just two weeks after an aging steam pipeline exploded in Manhattan, spewing hot vapor, mud and rock in the city's business district.
The pipe was more than 80 years old. Much of the city's infrastructure is more than a century old.
New York also suffers from a creaking electrical network, which comes close to collapse when soaring summer temperatures send demand for air conditioning rocketing and last year left tens of thousands without power for days.
But White House spokesman Tony Snow was at pains to point out Thursday the unique nature of the bridge collapse in Minnesota and insisted that systems were in place to prevent similar failures in future.
"This is the sort of thing that is unprecedented. We certainly don't want people to believe that this is the rule rather than the exception," he told reporters in Washington
"There's regular inspection of infrastructure around the United States constantly," he added. Bridges have to be inspected every two years and are listed on a national register, rated on a scale of one to 120.
Minnesota representative James Oberstar, chairman of the House of Representatives' Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, told Fox News that the bridge that collapsed was known to be in need of repairs.
"I know for a fact that the bridge has been listed as structurally deficient for several years," he said. "It was on their list of bridges to be fixed -- that is reconstruction work, bridge decking and bridge pier supports.
"About 40 percent of Minnesota's bridges have been rated by the state Department of Transport as structurally deficient and in need of bridge repair," he added.
"The state of Minnesota needs to make a major increase in its investment in infrastructure," he said, adding that authorities should either have closed the bridge or begun reconstruction work much earlier.
