35 W bridge in Minneapolis collapsed

[82Marine89]

Breaking as we speak.


There are vehicles in the drink. Others are stranded on sections of the bridge.

[nevadamedic]

Breaking as we speak.


There are vehicles in the drink. Others are stranded on sections of the bridge.

That sucks. It sounded like what happened during the Great Quake Of 89 in the Bay Area California when the Bay Bridge went down, tons of people were hurt and killed......... It sucked, I lived there at the time. We had Earthquakes all the time.

[82Marine89]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070802/ap_on_re_us/minnesota_bridge_collapse

[Dilloduck]

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070802/ap_on_re_us/minnesota_bridge_collapse

Unbelievable scene of search and rescue.Rush hour.

[nevadamedic]

Story Highlights

NEW: Fire chief: Search operations have ended for night, will resume in morning
At least 7 people dead after collapse; at least 60 injured, chief says
No indication that terrorism played role, Department of Homeland Security says
Cause of collapse unknown

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/08/01/bridge.collapse/index.html

They have to think terrorism is involved if the DHS is already involved this soon.

[nevadamedic]

Story Highlights

Some swam to safety, others leaped from their cars over gaps of asphalt
Witness Peter Siddons he heard "crunching" as bridge collapsed
School bus filled with children was caught on bridge
An interstate bridge in Minneapolis collapsed during rush hour; at least 7 dead

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/08/01/bridge.witness.ap/index.html

That's got to be scary being trapped on that bridge or your car going into the water. If I were there I would have been trying to save people even if my car went under.

[red states rule]

Mississippi River bridge collapses
ASSOCIATED PRESS
August 2, 2007

MINNEAPOLIS — An interstate bridge suddenly broke into huge sections and collapsed into the Mississippi River during bumper-to-bumper traffic yesterday, killing at least six persons and sending vehicles, tons of concrete and twisted metal crashing into the water.

The interstate 35W bridge, a major link between Minneapolis and St. Paul, was being repaired when it collapsed.

"There were two lanes of traffic, bumper to bumper, at the point of the collapse. Those cars did go into the river," Minneapolis Police Lt. Amelia Huffman. "At this point, there is nothing to suggest that this was anything other than a structural collapse."

Jamie Winegar of Houston said she was sitting in traffic when all of a sudden she started hearing "boom, boom, boom, and we were just dropping, dropping, dropping, dropping."

The car she was riding in landed on top of a smaller car but did not fall into the water. She said her nephew yelled, " 'It's an earthquake!' and then we realized the bridge was collapsing."

Mayor R.T. Rybak said at least six persons were killed. There were no immediate reports on the total number of injured, but Dr. Joseph Clinton, emergency medical chief at Hennepin County Medical Center, said the hospital treated 28 injured persons — including six who were in critical condition.

Other hospitals also were treating the injured. Dr. Clinton said at least one of the victims had drowned.

The arched bridge, which was built in 1967, rises about 64 feet above the river. An estimated 50 vehicles plunged into the water and onto the land below, the Star-Tribune reported.

for the complete article
http://washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070802/NATION/108020042/1001

[red states rule]

Breaking as we speak.


There are vehicles in the drink. Others are stranded on sections of the bridge.

I wish everyone well

How long do you think until the Bush haters will either blame Bush for it, or start whining about the relief efforts?

[red states rule]

Survivors Recount Escape From Bridge
By PAT CONDON, Associated Press Writer
2 hours ago

MINNEAPOLIS - Dennis and Jamie Winegar were driving across the Mississippi River, stuck in the late rush-hour traffic, when they felt the bridge beneath them start to shake. The visitors from Houston, Texas, were among the survivors of Wednesday's collapse of the Interstate 35W bridge near downtown Minneapolis.

Their car landed on top of a smaller car.

Jamie Winegar said she suddenly started hearing "boom, boom, boom and we were just dropping, dropping, dropping, dropping."

She said her nephew yelled, "'It's an earthquake!' and then we realized the bridge was collapsing."

Behind the wheel, Dennis Winegar fought to keep their rented Chrysler 300M under control.

"I slammed on my brakes and saw something in front of me disappear and then my car pointed straight down and we fell." He estimated they dropped about 50 feet.

Jamie Winegar said everyone around them got out of their cars and tried to help others off the bridge. "There were a bunch of people right around there helping everyone. Angels is what I call them."

Among the other vehicles caught on the ruined span as it came to rest was a school bus filled with children on their way back from a day of swimming. Ryan Watkins, one of the children, said the bus bounced twice and stopped, its front door wedged against a concrete traffic barrier. The children fled through the rear door.

Catherine Yankelevich tumbled into the Mississippi River. "Cars started flying and I was falling and saw the water," she said. She climbed out the driver's side window and swam to shore uninjured.

"It seemed like a movie, it was pretty scary," said Yankelevich. "I never expected anything like this to happen here."

Jacob Reynolds of Minneapolis, who had just returned from a family wedding out of town, was driving downtown and ready to get onto the freeway when he heard that the bridge had collapsed.

He said he's certified for disaster relief by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, so he ran over to see if he could help. Emergency crews were already fighting the fires.

"I realized there was nothing I could do so I continued to take pictures," Reynolds said. "I realized I couldn't capture it on film. It couldn't fit it in the camera. Some things are meant only for the eyes."

http://www.comcast.net/news/national/index.jsp?cat=DOMESTIC&fn=/2007/08/02/729649.html&cvqh=itn_bridgesurvivors

[Trinity]

That sucks. It sounded like what happened during the Great Quake Of 89 in the Bay Area California when the Bay Bridge went down, tons of people were hurt and killed......... It sucked, I lived there at the time. We had Earthquakes all the time.


I lived there too at that time, about 50 miles outside of San Fransisco. It was during the world series. I felt it at my house, the water was splashing about 3 feet out of the pool. Matter of fact I was talking to my Dad on the phone who was here in Ohio when that happen, I said oh shit I think we just had an earthquake! My dad was like why and I told him about the water then a couple of minutes later he was like it's on the news now you did have an earthquake.


I don't know maybe because I was born there but it seems to me like the only earthquakes I ever felt was when I was awake, if they happened at night when I was sleeping I never felt them and slept right through them.

[-Cp]

Video:

<embed src="http://www.liveleak.com/player.swf" width="450" height="370" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" pluginspage="http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashplayer" flashvars="autostart=false&token=1ab_1186054443" scale="showall" name="index"></embed>

[glockmail]

They are calling this a structural failure. The video does not disprove that.

[nevadamedic]

I lived there too at that time, about 50 miles outside of San Fransisco. It was during the world series. I felt it at my house, the water was splashing about 3 feet out of the pool. Matter of fact I was talking to my Dad on the phone who was here in Ohio when that happen, I said oh shit I think we just had an earthquake! My dad was like why and I told him about the water then a couple of minutes later he was like it's on the news now you did have an earthquake.


I don't know maybe because I was born there but it seems to me like the only earthquakes I ever felt was when I was awake, if they happened at night when I was sleeping I never felt them and slept right through them.

I was riding my bike during the major quake, let me tell you how much that sucked, i've never wiped out so damn hard in my life. We had pretty strong aftershocks for weeks afterwards. We always had earthquakes down there so I was used to it. I remember my parents actually kept me home from school. Then we would have earthquake drills sometimes up to twice a day.

We had a Golden Retriever that would go and lay in the steps of our pool 5 minutes before every earthquake we had. It never failed and that was the only time she would do that. We always knew when an earthquake was going to happen if we were at home...........

[nevadamedic]

They are calling this a structural failure. The video does not disprove that.

Then the state should have known about this......... Bridges should be checked constantly by Engineers.

Although hitting a major bridge at rush hour would be pretty smart for the terrorists. Imagine if they hit The Bay Bridge and The Golden Gate Bridge when it is bumper to bumper, also cutting off the travel rountes to San Francisco...........

[glockmail]

Then the state should have known about this......... Bridges should be checked constantly by Engineers.

Although hitting a major bridge at rush hour would be pretty smart for the terrorists. Imagine if they hit The Bay Bridge and The Golden Gate Bridge when it is bumper to bumper, also cutting off the travel rountes to San Francisco........... The last time the State inspected the bridge was 2 years ago and found to be "structurally deficient". There are literally thousands in the category, and by itself means little except that it has been evaluated by and engineer as less than 100% but still safe to carry traffic. It will be interesting to see the results of the forensic investigation.

[Kathianne]

The last time the State inspected the bridge was 2 years ago and found to be "structurally deficient". There are literally thousands in the category, and by itself means little except that it has been evaluated by and engineer as less than 100% but still safe to carry traffic. It will be interesting to see the results of the forensic investigation.

I thought I'd seen an inspection in 2006:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-070802collapse-deficient,0,7049488.story



...
The report by the late Robert J. Dexter and others, concluded that the bridge's deck "has not experienced fatigue cracking, but it has many poor fatigue details on the main truss and floor truss system."

The authors said their research helped determine that "fatigue cracking of the deck truss is not likely." They added that the bridge shouldn't have any problems with fatigue cracking "in the forseeable future" and that there was no need to "prematurely replace this bridge because of fatigue cracking, avoiding the high costs associated with such a large project."

However, the report noted "many poor fatigue details" and said certain members of the main truss should be inspected every two years, as was being done at the time. In addition, the report said, certain sections of the floor trusses had high stress areas that should be inspected every six months.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty said Wednesday night that the bridge was inspected in 2005 and 2006, and that no structural deficiencies were identified.

Workers had been engaged since early May on a resurfacing project on the bridge that was to conclude in September. It included the installation of guard rails and lighting.

The span carried the name Bridge 9340 in the books of the state Department of Transportation, although it originally was dubbed the St. Anthony Bridge.

The steel-arch structure, opened in 1967, carried 140,000 cars a day at last count, in 2002, its 1,907 feet spanning eight lanes.

[glockmail]

I thought I'd seen an inspection in 2006:

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/opinion/chi-070802collapse-deficient,0,7049488.story

Here's what I got out of that report:

The I-35W bridge was rated at 50 percent. The rating data was provided to the Star Tribune by the National Institute of Computer Assisted Reporting.

The inventory data also summarize the bridge's status as "structurally deficient." Bridge components are ranked on a scale of 0 to 9, with 0 being "failed" and 9 being "excellent."

In 2005, the bridge's superstructure -- meaning the physical conditions of all structural members -- was rated at 4, records show. The bridge's deck was rated 5, and the substructure, comprised of the piers, abutments, footings and other components, was rated 6.

A rating of 50% indicates that the bridge should be replaced. A 4 out of 9 on the superstructure is bad news. It appears that they are referring to the steel tension members below the deck. This info along with the video is leading me to believe that the failure was at a tension joint in the lower part of the arch.

[red states rule]

Feds: Minnesota Warned As Early as 1990 About 'Structurally Deficient' Bridge
Thursday, August 02, 2007

MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota officials were warned as early as 1990 that the bridge that plummeted into the Mississippi River was "structurally deficient," yet they relied on a strategy of patchwork fixes and stepped-up inspections.

"We thought we had done all we could," state bridge engineer Dan Dorgan told reporters not far from the mangled remains of the span. "Obviously something went terribly wrong."

Click here to see uReport photos from FOX News viewers.

Questions about the cause of the collapse and whether it could have been prevented arose Thursday as authorities shifted from rescue efforts to a grim recovery, searching for bodies that may be hidden beneath the river's swirling currents.

The official death count from Wednesday's rush-hour collapse stood at four, with another 79 injuries. But police said the death count would surely grow because bodies had been spotted in the water and as many as 30 people were still reported missing.

In 1990, the federal government gave the I-35W bridge a rating of "structurally deficient," citing significant corrosion in its bearings. That made it one of 77,000 bridges in that category nationwide, 1,160 in Minnesota alone.

The designation means some portions of the bridge needed to be scheduled for repair or replacement, and it was on a schedule for inspection every two years.

During the 1990s, later inspections found fatigue cracks and corrosion in the steel around the bridge's joints. Those problems were repaired. Starting in 1993, the state said, the bridge was inspected annually instead of every other year.

A 2005 federal inspection also rated the bridge structurally deficient, giving it a 50 on scale of 100 for structural stability.

White House press secretary Tony Snow said while the inspection didn't indicate the bridge was at risk of failing, "If an inspection report identifies deficiencies, the state is responsible for taking corrective actions."

Gov. Tim Pawlenty responded Thursday by ordering an immediate inspection of all bridges in the state with similar designs, but said the state was never warned that the bridge needed to be closed or immediately repaired.

"There was a view that the bridge was ultimately and eventually going to need to be replaced," he said. "But it appears from the information that we have available that a timeline for that was not immediate or imminent, but more in the future."

The eight-lane Interstate 35W bridge was Minnesota's busiest bridge, carrying 141,000 vehicles a day. It was in the midst of mostly repaving repairs when it buckled during the evening rush hour. Dozens of cars plummeted more than 60 feet into the Mississippi River, some falling on top one of another. A school bus sat on the angled concrete.

Engineers wondered whether heavy traffic might have contributed to the collapse. Studies of the bridge have raised concern about cracks caused by metal fatigue.

"I think everybody is looking at fatigue right now, fatigue due to heavy traffic," said Kent Harries, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering in the University of Pittsburgh's School of Engineering. "This is an interstate bridge that sees a lot of truck traffic."

Witnesses Describe Bridge Collapse

When conducting inspections, Dorgan said, inspectors get within an arm's length of various components of a bridge. If they spot cracks, that leads to more hands-on testing to determine the depth and extent of the fissures.

The collapsed bridge's last full inspection was completed June 15, 2006. The report shows previous inspectors' notations of fatigue cracks in the spans approaching the river, including one 4 feet long that was reinforced with bolted plates. A 1993 entry noted 3,000 feet of cracks in the surface of the bridge; they were later sealed.

That inspection and one a year earlier raised no immediate concerns about the bridge, which wasn't a candidate for replacement for another 13 years.

In a 2001 report from the University of Minnesota's Department of Civil Engineering, inspectors found some girders had become distorted. Engineers also saw evidence of fatigue on trusses and said the bridge might collapse if part of the truss gave way under the eight-lane freeway.

"A bridge of that vintage you always have to be concerned about that," said Richard Sause, director of the Advanced Technology for Large Structural Systems Center at Lehigh University. "In a steel bridge of that age, sure you'd be concerned about those kind of things and be diligent about looking after it. And it seems like they were."

Bridge Collapses in Minnesota

It takes time for a fatigue crack to develop, but a crack can then expand rapidly to become a fracture, Garrett said. "If you get a crack that goes undetected it would be something that appears to happen more rapidly."

At the scene, about 15 divers and a dozen boats were in the water, but the search was proceeding slowly because of strong currents and low visibility. By mid-afternoon, they had located four submerged cars besides the dozen or so visible from the surface.

"We have a number of vehicles that are underneath big pieces of concrete, and we do know we have some people in those vehicles," Dolan said. "We know we do have more casualties at the scene."

Meanwhile, relatives who couldn't find their loved ones at hospitals gathered in a hotel ballroom for any news, hoping for the best.

Ronald Engebretsen, 57, was searching for his wife, Sherry. His daughter last heard from her when she left work Wednesday in downtown Minneapolis. Her cell phone has picked up with voice mail ever since.

"We are left with the hope that there is a Jane Doe in a hospital somewhere that's her." Sherry Engebretsen was later confirmed as one of the dead.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,291933,00.html

[Dilloduck]

Feds: Minnesota Warned As Early as 1990 About 'Structurally Deficient' Bridge
Thursday, August 02, 2007

MINNEAPOLIS — Minnesota officials were warned as early as 1990 that the bridge that plummeted into the Mississippi River was "structurally deficient," yet they relied on a strategy of patchwork fixes and stepped-up inspections.

"We thought we had done all we could," state bridge engineer Dan Dorgan told reporters not far from the mangled remains of the span. "Obviously something went terribly wrong."

Click here to see uReport photos from FOX News viewers.

Questions about the cause of the collapse and whether it could have been prevented arose Thursday as authorities shifted from rescue efforts to a grim recovery, searching for bodies that may be hidden beneath the river's swirling currents.

The official death count from Wednesday's rush-hour collapse stood at four, with another 79 injuries. But police said the death count would surely grow because bodies had been spotted in the water and as many as 30 people were still reported missing.

In 1990, the federal government gave the I-35W bridge a rating of "structurally deficient," citing significant corrosion in its bearings. That made it one of 77,000 bridges in that category nationwide, 1,160 in Minnesota alone.

The designation means some portions of the bridge needed to be scheduled for repair or replacement, and it was on a schedule for inspection every two years.

During the 1990s, later inspections found fatigue cracks and corrosion in the steel around the bridge's joints. Those problems were repaired. Starting in 1993, the state said, the bridge was inspected annually instead of every other year.

A 2005 federal inspection also rated the bridge structurally deficient, giving it a 50 on scale of 100 for structural stability.

White House press secretary Tony Snow said while the inspection didn't indicate the bridge was at risk of failing, "If an inspection report identifies deficiencies, the state is responsible for taking corrective actions."

Gov. Tim Pawlenty responded Thursday by ordering an immediate inspection of all bridges in the state with similar designs, but said the state was never warned that the bridge needed to be closed or immediately repaired.

"There was a view that the bridge was ultimately and eventually going to need to be replaced," he said. "But it appears from the information that we have available that a timeline for that was not immediate or imminent, but more in the future."

The eight-lane Interstate 35W bridge was Minnesota's busiest bridge, carrying 141,000 vehicles a day. It was in the midst of mostly repaving repairs when it buckled during the evening rush hour. Dozens of cars plummeted more than 60 feet into the Mississippi River, some falling on top one of another. A school bus sat on the angled concrete.

Engineers wondered whether heavy traffic might have contributed to the collapse. Studies of the bridge have raised concern about cracks caused by metal fatigue.

"I think everybody is looking at fatigue right now, fatigue due to heavy traffic," said Kent Harries, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering in the University of Pittsburgh's School of Engineering. "This is an interstate bridge that sees a lot of truck traffic."

Witnesses Describe Bridge Collapse

When conducting inspections, Dorgan said, inspectors get within an arm's length of various components of a bridge. If they spot cracks, that leads to more hands-on testing to determine the depth and extent of the fissures.

The collapsed bridge's last full inspection was completed June 15, 2006. The report shows previous inspectors' notations of fatigue cracks in the spans approaching the river, including one 4 feet long that was reinforced with bolted plates. A 1993 entry noted 3,000 feet of cracks in the surface of the bridge; they were later sealed.

That inspection and one a year earlier raised no immediate concerns about the bridge, which wasn't a candidate for replacement for another 13 years.

In a 2001 report from the University of Minnesota's Department of Civil Engineering, inspectors found some girders had become distorted. Engineers also saw evidence of fatigue on trusses and said the bridge might collapse if part of the truss gave way under the eight-lane freeway.

"A bridge of that vintage you always have to be concerned about that," said Richard Sause, director of the Advanced Technology for Large Structural Systems Center at Lehigh University. "In a steel bridge of that age, sure you'd be concerned about those kind of things and be diligent about looking after it. And it seems like they were."

Bridge Collapses in Minnesota

It takes time for a fatigue crack to develop, but a crack can then expand rapidly to become a fracture, Garrett said. "If you get a crack that goes undetected it would be something that appears to happen more rapidly."

At the scene, about 15 divers and a dozen boats were in the water, but the search was proceeding slowly because of strong currents and low visibility. By mid-afternoon, they had located four submerged cars besides the dozen or so visible from the surface.

"We have a number of vehicles that are underneath big pieces of concrete, and we do know we have some people in those vehicles," Dolan said. "We know we do have more casualties at the scene."

Meanwhile, relatives who couldn't find their loved ones at hospitals gathered in a hotel ballroom for any news, hoping for the best.

Ronald Engebretsen, 57, was searching for his wife, Sherry. His daughter last heard from her when she left work Wednesday in downtown Minneapolis. Her cell phone has picked up with voice mail ever since.

"We are left with the hope that there is a Jane Doe in a hospital somewhere that's her." Sherry Engebretsen was later confirmed as one of the dead.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,291933,00.html

Oh goody---people arguing about which politician fell asleep at the switch again.

[red states rule]

Oh goody---people arguing about which politician fell asleep at the switch again.

That is nothing - check this out

http://www.debatepolicy.com/showthread.php?t=5830

[Dilloduck]

That is nothing - check this out

http://www.debatepolicy.com/showthread.php?t=5830

The blind expectation that our politicians can protect us from accidents or death is astounding. My favorite line in all this so far was the woman who said "bridges don't just fall down in America". I got news for ya lady--they fall down in whatever country they are if they're broken and no man on earth can prevent it.

[red states rule]

The blind expectation that our politicians can protect us from accidents or death is astounding. My favorite line in all this so far was the woman who said "bridges don't just fall down in America". I got news for ya lady--they fall down in whatever country they are if they're broken and no man on earth can prevent it.

For the last 6 years, the liberal moonbats have blamed Bush for everything

When the shuttle was destroyed coming back to Earth, a liberal bimbo on CSPAN said it was God's punishment for electing Bush. She based it on the fact the shuttle burned up over Texas :bs1:

[Dilloduck]

For the last 6 years, the liberal moonbats have blamed Bush for everything

When the shuttle was destroyed coming back to Earth, a liberal bimbo on CSPAN said it was God's punishment for electing Bush. She based it on the fact the shuttle burned up over Texas :bs1:

Ya ya---and the other half blame it on the liberals. I guess Americans will blog while the United States withers.

[red states rule]

Ya ya---and the other half blame it on the liberals. I guess Americans will blog while the United States withers.

When have Republicans blamed libs on a natural disaster or an accident?

[nevadamedic]

When have Republicans blamed libs on a natural disaster or an accident?

When Slick Willy Clinton got elected, that was a national disaster! :laugh2:

[red states rule]

When Slick Willy Clinton got elected, that was a national disaster! :laugh2:

I did not blame libs

I blamed Perot

[Dilloduck]

When have Republicans blamed libs on a natural disaster or an accident?

My bad----you and NM blame everything OTHER than an accident or natural disaster on liberals. I assume you're aware of what will become of us all if we don't get over this partisan insanity?

[red states rule]

My bad----you and NM blame everything OTHER than an accident or natural disaster on liberals. I assume you're aware of what will become of us all if we don't get over this partisan insanity?

I have taken Republicans to task many times

Spending, arrogance of power, the immigration mess, and not securing the borders - to name a few

I try to be fiar and call them as I see them

I have been a big supporter of Pres Bush - voted for him twice. But I am very happy he will be gone on 1/20/09

[CockySOB]

According the the National Bridge Inventory maintained by the Federal Highway Administration, the bridge was under the ownership/maintenance of the "state highway agency."

That said, the superstructure was rated as deficient, and the status of the bridge itself was rated as deficient, although the sufficiency rating showed up as "50%"

This is the data record from the 2006 NBI database for bridge 9340

2759340 1110035W00505343000RR, MISS R, 2ND ST & Rd I 35W 1.0 MI NE OF JCT TH 94 99990000000100000000000044585089093144009010301011 1196708031410002004603293001111151019501219A184094 00003001115801390005813005005031703459999H0482H045 0005467N15391327447598381005810060512Y48Y60N 06031204 0185360002010030192003 1N2 100000140N0411Y8000000 0000NN0440312 060530BA 044035318212 1 0500

The bold and italicized field is the STATUS field, and the indicator of "1" means "deficient." The last four digits of the record are the sufficiency rating (1000 = 100.0%) showing a sufficiency of 50.0%.

[nevadamedic]

I did not blame libs

I blamed Perot

Perot would have won if he didn't play that whole leaving the election campaign.

[glockmail]

Feds: Minnesota Warned As Early as 1990 About 'Structurally Deficient' Bridge
Thursday, August 02, 2007

....."We thought we had done all we could," state bridge engineer Dan Dorgan told reporters not far from the mangled remains of the span. "Obviously something went terribly wrong."

.......In 1990, the federal government gave the I-35W bridge a rating of "structurally deficient," citing significant corrosion in its bearings. That made it one of 77,000 bridges in that category nationwide, 1,160 in Minnesota alone.

........During the 1990s, later inspections found fatigue cracks and corrosion in the steel around the bridge's joints. Those problems were repaired. Starting in 1993, the state said, the bridge was inspected annually instead of every other year.

.....

Engineers wondered whether heavy traffic might have contributed to the collapse. Studies of the bridge have raised concern about cracks caused by metal fatigue.

"I think everybody is looking at fatigue right now, fatigue due to heavy traffic," said Kent Harries, an assistant professor of civil and environmental engineering in the University of Pittsburgh's School of Engineering. "This is an interstate bridge that sees a lot of truck traffic."
.....


In a 2001 report from the University of Minnesota's Department of Civil Engineering, inspectors found some girders had become distorted. Engineers also saw evidence of fatigue on trusses and said the bridge might collapse if part of the truss gave way under the eight-lane freeway.

......


This is all important info on the possible cause of the collapse. My theory: fatigue due to corrosion caused overstrees in the steel arch, which deformed, causing additional stress and fatigue. The structure does not appear to be redundant so the falure of one element can take the entire thing down. I think this is a tension failure in a single component of the arch. This will go down as poor design, inability of the State to recognize the potential impact of fatigue and react by increasing the priority for replacement.

They were working on repair of the deck when they should have been replacing the superstucture. The govenror is already setting himself up trying to blame the feds.

[actsnoblemartin]

That is really scary, oh on a side note, god bless you and thank you for your service.


Breaking as we speak.


There are vehicles in the drink. Others are stranded on sections of the bridge.

[red states rule]

Perot would have won if he didn't play that whole leaving the election campaign.

But he took many votes from Bush 41 and gave the election to Bill on a silver platter

[red states rule]

This is all important info on the possible cause of the collapse. My theory: fatigue due to corrosion caused overstrees in the steel arch, which deformed, causing additional stress and fatigue. The structure does not appear to be redundant so the falure of one element can take the entire thing down. I think this is a tension failure in a single component of the arch. This will go down as poor design, inability of the State to recognize the potential impact of fatigue and react by increasing the priority for replacement.

They were working on repair of the deck when they should have been replacing the superstucture. The govenror is already setting himself up trying to blame the feds.

and the libs are blaming Bush - even before the bodies are cold

What a sick political world we have today

[82Marine89]

That is really scary, oh on a side note, god bless you and thank you for your service.

Thank you.

[red states rule]

Thank you.

Ditto

Sorry I did not thank you earlier for your service

I do so now - thank you!!!!!

[Trinity]

Ok so I had to go across our bridge from Ohio to Kentucky for a job interview yesterday, needless to say I prayed all the way across the bridge. That is not a first for me, I always worry about that happening every time I cross those bridges. And then the day before I am due to cross that bridge this happens, I almost canceled my interview.

[red states rule]

Ok so I had to go across our bridge from Ohio to Kentucky for a job interview yesterday, needless to say I prayed all the way across the bridge. That is not a first for me, I always worry about that happening every time I cross those bridges. And then the day before I am due to cross that bridge this happens, I almost canceled my interview.

The odds in the bridge falling is slim. The liberal media wil hipe this and scare the hell out of people

Don't fall for it.

Hope you get the job

[LiberalNation]

When I was working I crossed the bridge over the Ohio river going to Indiana. Never worried me and they are doing construction on it now. Of all the things you can die of a bridge collapsing beneath you is too rare of thing to worry about.

[red states rule]

Hang on to your money folks

Dems and the liberal media will be telling you how you need to fork over more money before more people die


Area Bridges Need Pricey Repair Work
Hundreds of Spans Cited in Report

By Michael Laris and Virgil Dickson
Washington Post Staff Writers
Friday, August 3, 2007; Page B01

More than a dozen bridges in the District, hundreds more in Maryland, and nearly 1,200 in Virginia have deteriorated sharply since they were built and need increasingly expensive fixes to remain safe, according to federal and local statistics and interviews.

Like the span that collapsed in Minneapolis, those bridges are listed as "structurally deficient" by federal standards, a transportation term of art that indicates "major deterioration, cracks, or other deficiencies in their decks, structure, or foundations," according to a 2006 U.S. Department of Transportation report.

Local transportation engineers emphasized yesterday that despite being tagged as "deficient," the bridges are safe to travel on. "If we feel a bridge is not safe, we would close it without delay," said Ardeshir Nafici, acting chief engineer for the District's Department of Transportation.

But the District, which maintains many of the Washington region's vital Potomac River bridges, will not have the resources to keep its structures safe during the next decade or two without a major infusion of funds, according to Kathleen Penney, deputy chief engineer for the city's Transportation Department.

"A lot of bridges were built in the late '50s and '60s. We're dealing with a time issue," Penney said. "Nationally, there are a massive number of bridges that are coming to the end of their useful lives. . . . We have some major bridges that are going to need work over the next 10 or 20 years. The District is a very small government, and our normal apportionment [of federal funds] is not enough to address the deficiencies we know we are going to have to deal with."

Penney cited the Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Bridge as one example of an aging structure that will need an overhaul in coming years.

Several other Washington area bridges are being rebuilt or rehabilitated. The first span of a new Woodrow Wilson Bridge opened last year, and the second is slated to open next year; maintenance work is being done on the underside of the American Legion Bridge; the Frederick Douglass Bridge is being overhauled this month; and repairs are ongoing on the William Preston Lane Jr. Memorial (Chesapeake Bay) Bridge.

Federal rules require bridge inspections every two years or less, local officials said.

D.C. officials said 15 of its bridges, or just over 6 percent, were listed as "structurally deficient," according to the latest statistics from the city.

District officials said two bridges have not been inspected within the past two years. They are both over Amtrak lines and were last inspected in 2004 because the Transportation Department had trouble gaining access to the sites, the officials said.

Some on the District's deficient list are set for expensive fixes. For instance, there are plans for a major overhaul and redesign of the 11th Street Bridge beginning in 2009, according to spokesman Erik Linden.

Officials in Virginia, where 1,197 bridges -- 9 percent -- were federally classified as "structurally deficient," and Maryland, where 410 -- 8 percent -- received the designation, repeatedly noted that their bridges are safe for travel.

"This is an opportunity to realize that these bridges were not built by themselves and require all of us to invest in our infrastructure . . . to make sure tragedies like this don't happen," Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) said at a news conference yesterday. State Transportation Secretary John D. Porcari added that no Marylander "should be concerned about the safety of our bridges."

Porcari said that in April, the Federal Highway Administration gave the state an "excellent rating" for inspections. He said Maryland is responsible for the maintenance of more than half of the state's 5,000-plus bridges. Local governments are responsible for the rest.

Virginia has an "aggressive bridge inspection and safety program which goes beyond federal requirements," said Joan Morris, a spokeswoman for the state's Department of Transportation.

"We conduct about 12,000 bridge inspections each year. We have no reason to believe that any bridge in Virginia is in danger of collapse. If we find a safety or structural concern, we immediately post a weight limit, detour traffic and repair the bridge," Morris said.

VDOT staff members yesterday began a review of records of the state's 20,000 bridges and large culverts -- boxlike structures through which traffic passes. Officials said the analysis will identify Virginia bridges consisting of a "long, open span" similar to the Minneapolis bridge as well as bridges of similar age. Officials did not know how long the review would take.

In Arlington County, designs are being drawn up to replace a bridge at Route 27 and Columbia Pike, Virginia officials said.

Advocacy groups said the collapse in Minneapolis, coupled with federal statistics showing substantial numbers of bridges in the District, Maryland and Virginia needing repair, is a wake-up call for local officials.

"It doesn't mean that the bridge is likely to collapse or fall down tomorrow. It doesn't mean they are unsafe," said John B. Townsend II, a spokesman for AAA Mid-Atlantic. Still, he said, "It's a red flag; it's an early warning."

Local officials would not speculate on the cause of the bridge collapse in Minneapolis. "However, we will be relentless in our efforts to improve our practices where we can and learn whatever lessons the tragedy in Minneapolis may offer," Porcari said.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/02/AR2007080202500.html?hpid=topnews

[Dilloduck]

We just need to have a lot of bridges collapse and people will get over it. We already "accept" over 40,000 of death a year from automoblie accidents without blinking an eye.

[red states rule]

We just need to have a lot of bridges collapse and people will get over it. We already "accept" over 40,000 of death a year from automoblie accidents without blinking an eye.

Gove the left time, and they will blame Bush for those deaths as well

[nevadamedic]

The odds in the bridge falling is slim. The liberal media wil hipe this and scare the hell out of people

Don't fall for it.

Hope you get the job

Try going through the Caldecot Tunnell in the Bay Area. I hate going through that knowing the ocean is right above you.............

[Pale Rider]

And now, after ROUND THE CLOCK COVERAGE for DAYS, I'm sick of hearing about it.

The news outlets milk shit like this until I could give a rats ass what happened or who died.

Give us a day, maybe two of round the clock coverage, and then just the highlights. This weeks and weeks of coverage, interviewing every bum about what he saw and HOW HE FELT is just SICKENING!

[Yurt]

We just need to have a lot of bridges collapse and people will get over it. We already "accept" over 40,000 of death a year from automoblie accidents without blinking an eye.

I don't think they are the same thing. Bridges are planned, maintained, auto "accidents" are not.

[Dilloduck]

I don't think they are the same thing. Bridges are planned, maintained, auto "accidents" are not.

I think it's the same principal though. Americans tend to have a false sense of security and get shocked and angry when something unusual happens. More people have been killed in a two car collision than the bridge collapse but car collisions are ho hum. I still love the womans quote " Bridges don't just fall down in America" as she stands next to one laying in the water.

[CockySOB]

I think it's the same principal though. Americans tend to have a false sense of security and get shocked and angry when something unusual happens. More people have been killed in a two car collision than the bridge collapse but car collisions are ho hum. I still love the womans quote " Bridges don't just fall down in America" as she stands next to one laying in the water.

Most people believe they have a greater measure of control over whether they are in a car accident than in other types of disasters 9like a bridge collapse). As I see it, the "concern" is an attempt to reduce the chance of such a disaster to the level that they (the drivers) have some measure of control.

[nevadamedic]

Most people believe they have a greater measure of control over whether they are in a car accident than in other types of disasters 9like a bridge collapse). As I see it, the "concern" is an attempt to reduce the chance of such a disaster to the level that they (the drivers) have some measure of control.

People think they have control over that sort of thing by praying as well, and we all saw how well that works.............

[Dilloduck]

Most people believe they have a greater measure of control over whether they are in a car accident than in other types of disasters 9like a bridge collapse). As I see it, the "concern" is an attempt to reduce the chance of such a disaster to the level that they (the drivers) have some measure of control.

You must be speaking of the illusion of control.

[CockySOB]

You must be speaking of the illusion of control.

Yeah, I see I wasn't as clear as I could have been about that.

[red states rule]

Margaret Carlson Regrets Lack of 'Will' to Raise Taxes as '$4,000 a Minute' Spent in Iraq
By Brent Baker | August 4, 2007 - 01:21 ET
Time magazine veteran Margaret Carlson, now with Bloomberg News and The Week magazine, used the Minnesota bridge collapse tragedy as a fresh excuse to tout how the public really wants a tax hike while she regretted the lack of political “will” to raise taxes and that the government can't find more money for infrastructure but can afford “$4,000 a minute on the Iraq war.” Citing a poll conducted a decade ago when Democrat Ed Rendell was Mayor of Philadelphia, on Friday's Inside Washington aired on the DC PBS station, WETA-TV channel 26, Carlson claimed that “nearly 70 percent of people polled would pay more in taxes to actually know that they could cross the 14th Street bridge safely,” a reference to a bridge between Washington, DC and Virginia. “But,” she fretted, “you can't get the will to do it. I mean, we certainly had the wake-up call in Katrina, everyone knows the situation, but can you really get it done when there's, by the way, very little money left?”

A couple of quotes from Carlson on the August 3 Inside Washington, a show produced at Washington, DC's ABC affiliate, which airs it Sunday morning after it runs Friday night on the PBS station and Saturday night on NewsChannel 8, a DC cable news channel owned by the ABC affiliate:


The heart for fixing bridges, eh, not so much. Building a bridge, politicians like that. Mayor Ed Rendell, when he was mayor of Philadelphia, was chair of a group called Rebuild America, and found that 70 percent, nearly 70 percent of people polled would pay more in taxes to actually know that they could cross the 14th Street bridge safely. But, you know, you can't get the will to do it. I mean, we certainly had the wake-up call in Katrina, everyone knows the situation, but can you really get it done when there's, by the way, very little money left, as you [moderator Gordon Peterson] say?...

But, Charles [Krauthammer], as time goes on, the [infrastructure] problem gets worse. And we're coming up against it at the time when we're spending, what, $4,000 a minute on the Iraq war.

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/brent-baker/2007/08/04/margaret-carlson-regrets-lack-will-raise-taxes-4-000-minute-spent-iraq

[red states rule]

From the liberal rag "The Nation"

Libs keep providing great material


Broken Bridges, Lost Levees and a Brutal Culture of Neglect


As rescue workers continued to pull bodies out of the stretch of the Mississippi River that runs beneath the collapsed I-35W bridge in Minneapolis Thursday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters released a $5 million grant to help with cleanup and recovery at the site of the disaster.

That will barely be enough to cover the expense of extracting the bodies of the drowned and dismembered commuters who were hurtled into the river when the interstate highway bridge they were traveling on buckled and then fell into the river. And it will not begin to pay for the rebuilding of a vital transportation link in one of America's most populous cities -- an initiative that will cost in the hundreds of millions.

To get the money that is needed to repair the damage, limits on federal aid for infrastructure will have to be lifted.

This will happen now not because the money is needed but because dozens of Minnesotans have been killed and injured.

If the federal limits were not applied with an eye toward denying needed infrastructure funding to states, if the federal government accepted its responsibility to maintain the bridges, roads, levees and sewers of the United States, the death and destruction that comes from neglect might well have been avoided.

The I-35W bridge had repeatedly been identified as suffering from "fatigue cracks." Inspectors had labeled it "structurally deficient."

Yet, as Minneapolis Star-Tribune columnist Nick Coleman noted on the morning after the collapse, "The death bridge was 'structurally deficient,' we now learn, and had a rating of just 50 percent, the threshold for replacement. But no one appears to have erred on the side of public safety. The errors were all the other way."

That's not a unique circumstance. That is the daily reality of America's rapidly aging and decaying infrastructure. Just a few weeks ago in New York City, an underground steam pipe exploded, killing one person and injuring dozens

Natural disasters do occur. Storms, heat, aging steel and concrete can all contribute to horrific turns of events like the Minneapolis bridge collapse, the pipe explosion in New York, or the nightmare that occurred in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina hitting the Gulf Coast.

But there is simply no question that the steady neglect of the crying need for repair and improvement of bridges, levees and other vital pieces of the nation's infrastructure, and the resolute stinginess of a federal government that is much better at finding money to repair the Middle East than the middle west, makes disasters more likely to occur and more extreme in their consequences.

Minnesota Senator Amy Klobucher is right when she says, "Bridges in America should not be falling down."

They will continue to fall, however, just as aging levies will continue to crumble, until the federal government gets serious about investing in the updating, improvement and replacement of decaying infrastructure. The point here is not to absolve state officials, who in Minnesota -- as in Louisiana two years ago -- could and should have done more. But an "interstate highway system" is, by its nature and by the intents of the founders of the American experiment and their wisest successors, a federal priority.

Major infrastructure challenges, such as maintaining bridges over our mightiest rivers and modernizing levies, ought never be the sole or even the major responsibility of cash-strapped state and local governments. That is a recipe for disaster -- deadly, injurious and damaging disaster of a sort that plays out not just in "headline" events like a bridge collapse but in hundreds of below-the-radar infrastructure failures each year.

The American Society of Civil Engineers argues that, "With each passing day, aging and overburdened infrastructure threatens the economy and quality of life in every state, city and town in the nation." Conditions have grown so bad that the ASCE estimates it would cost $1.6 trillion over a five-year period just to bring the nation's infrastructure up to "good" condition. "Establishing a long-term development and maintenance plan must become a national priority," says the group.

That $1.6 trillion figure sounds like a lot of money, unless it is compared with the anticipated cost of $1 trillion or more for completing George Bush's mission in Iraq.

Make no mistake, the money to renew our collapsing infrastructure can be found.

But it will not be spent appropriately until top officials in Washington, led by the president, recognize that maintaining the infrastructure of the United States is as important, and as worthy of investment, as fighting wars in places like Iraq.

There are many costs that come when our leaders divert $2 billion every ten days to occupy a distant land. The first of these is human. Wars cost lives in a war zone, but they also dry up the funding that could save lives on the home front. By drawing resources away from vital social and economic development projects at home -- and maintaining a safe and functional infrastructure is essential to progress on both fronts -- an obsessive focus on warmaking abroad leaves a trail of death, destruction and decay in the U.S.

Writing of federal "negligence" when it comes to infrastructure repair, the Star-Tribune's Coleman observed, "A trillion spent in Iraq, while schools crumble, there aren't enough cops on the street and bridges decay while our leaders cross their fingers and ignore the rising chances of disaster.

"And now, one has fallen, to our great sorrow, and people died losing a gamble they didn't even know they had taken. They believed someone was guarding the bridge.

"We need a new slogan and we needed it yesterday:

"No More Collapses."

Amen to that.

http://www.thenation.com/blogs/thebeat?pid=219575

[red states rule]

Bush to Tour Site of Minn. Bridge Collapse

By Paul Lewis
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, August 4, 2007; 10:22 AM

MINNEAPOLIS, Aug. 4 -- President Bush landed in Minneapolis this morning for a tour of the collapsed Interstate 35W bridge and to meet survivors, rescuers and the heroes that helped ferry victims to safety.

After an aerial tour of the crumpled bridge, Bush will tour the scene on the ground to see the devastation left after Wednesday evening's collapse.

At least five people were killed and about 100 injured when the bridge plummeted more than 60 feet into the Mississippi River.

At least five of the injured were in critical condition, hospital officials said. The precise number of victims still missing is unknown, although some authorities have reduced their estimate from 20 to 30 to perhaps as few as eight.

Shortly before the president arrived, Transportation Secretary Mary Peters, who will accompany Bush on the tour along with other lawmakers and officials, told reporters that the nation has an aging infrastructure but added that highways and bridges remain "safe."

She said she has asked the department's inspector general to investigate the bridge inspection program and look at the prioritization of funds.

The results of state inspections of some 750 bridge across the country with similar steel arch construction designs to the I-35 have not yet come through, she added.

Earlier today, Bush used his weekly radio address to confirm more federal money is to be made available to help the city rebuild the bridge.

On Thursday, administration officials said that $5 million in federal funding would immediately be made available for debris removal and to help restore traffic in the affected area. This, Bush said, was "just the beginning" of a package of assistance to help Minnesota in its recovery efforts.

In the broadcast he also commended the civilians who helped save lives in the aftermath of the collapse.

After paying homage to those who died in the tragedy and offering prayers for the injured, Bush spoke in uplifting terms about the heroism displayed by victims and bystanders who acted swiftly.

"In times of tragedy, our hearts ache for those who suffer, yet our hearts are also lifted by acts of courage and compassion," he said.

He praised residents of a nearby apartment building who rushed to help soon after the bridge came down, as well as the divers and firefighters who risked their lives to search for survivors.

He identified Jeremy Hernandez, a youth counselor who has been widely commended for kicking open a door and helping ferry children to safety who were trapped inside a school bus teetering on the edge of the broken bridge.

"Our country is fortunate to have brave and selfless citizens like Jeremy, and all those who risked their own safety to aid in the rescue," he said. "This is a difficult time for the community in Minneapolis, but the people there are decent and resilient, and they will get through these painful hours. As they do, they know that all of America stands with them, and that we will do all we can to help them recover and rebuild."

Today's trip is a challenge for Bush, who was criticized in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina last August for downplaying federal responsibilities and taking too long to tour the Gulf states and meet survivors.

The administration has recently responded different when responding to localized tragedies, and appeared keen to show empathy with victims.

Bush visited victims of tornadoes that swept through Alabama and Georgia in March, for example, and another that wiped out the town of Greensburg, Kan., in May.

He also also visited the scene of the Virginia Tech campus shootings in April, offering condolences and words of support to the devastated community.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/04/AR2007080400302.html?hpid%3Dtopnews&sub=AR

[red states rule]

How to Keep Our Bridges Safe
Private investors can manage critical transportation infrastructure.

BY STEVEN MALANGA
Sunday, August 5, 2007 12:01 a.m. EDT

The tragic bridge collapse in Minneapolis is a stark reminder that too much of our transportation infrastructure is not well-maintained and requires extensive, costly investments to be fixed or even, in some cases, completely replaced.

Nearly a fifth of America's roads are now considered in poor shape and about 1 in 4 bridges is rated "structurally deficient." The U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that the cost to fix these problems is a staggering $460 billion. The tab grows far larger when you add in the hundreds of billions to build the new transportation infrastructure that's needed to handle the country's growth.

Part of the problem is that big increases in state and local spending for politically popular programs, especially Medicaid and education, as well costly public employee pensions and benefits, have crowded out infrastructure--even as some traditional sources of financing for roads and bridges, such as the proceeds from gas taxes, haven't kept pace with demand.





It's unlikely that public funds alone will supply what's needed. Rising gasoline prices have made it politically unpalatable to increase fuel taxes, while some state and local budgets are already groaning under the weight of decades of borrowing, making massive new debt offerings more and more difficult. More federal transportation money? The problem is that 98% of our bridges and 97% of our roads are owned and operated by state and local governments--and that these governments have often used past increases in federal transportation aid simply to replace their own infrastructure spending.
Instead, a few states and cities are now creatively turning to the private sector for help. They are partnering with private investors to build from scratch new toll roads, bridges and other infrastructure that the private owners--not government--will finance and operate. A few cash-strapped cities and states are also replenishing their transportation trust funds--so that they can pour more money into repair and maintenance-- by auctioning off existing toll roads and bridges to private operators, who are bidding far more for these assets than most experts would have predicted.

Tapping private investors to build and operate public roads and bridges is nothing new around the rest of the world. Starting with 1955 legislation which allowed the government to select local groups to build toll roads, France licensed private investors to construct and operate some 5,500 kilometers of inter-city autoroutes.

In Britain, Margaret Thatcher's privatization movement in the 1980s spurred both the sale of existing government assets and public-private construction projects. Later, the fall of the Soviet Union produced a vast round of privatization of public assets in formerly Eastern bloc countries. The U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that world-wide there have been more than 1,100 public-private deals in the transportation field alone in the last 20 years, with a value of some $360 billion.

Only recently have a few intrepid U.S. politicians tested the waters, with startling results. Confronting a $3 billion transportation-funding shortfall, Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels in 2006 auctioned off the rights to operate the Indiana Toll Road to a private consortium for a staggering $3.85 billion.

In effect, the private operators gave the state a fat up-front payment in exchange for the right to collect tolls for 75 years. The agreement requires the private operator to invest in rebuilding the road over time, and as well to follow a lengthy list of operating standards, from how best to fill potholes to how quickly to clear roadkill. The agreement also limits toll increases, setting out a schedule of fee hikes over the years that the new owner must adhere to.

The winning bidder--a consortium of Cintra of Madrid and Macquarie Infrastructure Group of Sydney--agreed to these conditions and still offered far more than anyone expected. This demonstrates a basic principle that anyone who has ever sold something on eBay readily understands: The true worth of something is what someone is willing to pay for it.

Using traditional means of valuing a public asset--which is to calculate how much in municipal financing could be raised by floating bonds backed by the road's tolls--Indiana pegged the road's value at $1.8 billion. Instead, the nearly $4 billion that Indiana got has replenished the state's transportation fund and allowed the state to embark on an aggressive program of new building and maintenance.

Mr. Daniels is not the only public official to tap the market. Chicago Mayor Richard Daley garnered $1.8 billion auctioning the city's Skyway to the same partners who purchased Indiana's Toll Road. He's now trying to sell Midway Airport, which could fetch up to $3 billion. As in the Indiana deal, Chicago discovered that its roadway, whose worth the city's advisers had pegged at $900 million, was far more valuable to private investors. The vast disparity in valuation highlights essential differences between the private and public sectors.

For starters, private financiers in these deals--mostly managers of international pension funds with enormous sums to invest--often have a greater taste for risk than the typical conservative investor in municipal bonds. The winning consortium in the Chicago Skyway auction estimated that traffic would grow annually by about 3%. The city's own study used a more conservative 1% growth rate. The small difference, stretched out over decades, resulted in a vastly greater valuation.

Moreover, the Skyway sale transfers risk from the taxpayer to the private owner. If the road's traffic doesn't grow as anticipated, investors must accept a lower rate of return. Thus incentivized, the Skyway's new owners quickly installed an electronic toll-collection system and assigned additional collectors during rush hour to reduce wait times and expand use of the road.





The success of the Chicago and Indiana sales now has some political leaders scrambling to find other privatization possibilities. There are some estimates that several dozen deals could transpire in the next two years, yielding up to $80 billion for governments.
But selling existing assets may turn out to be only a small part of the story. Budget-squeezed governments are also accepting bids by private investors to finance, build and operate new roads.

Texas has made private capital a key ingredient in a vast road-building project known as the Trans-Texas Corridor. The state has already entered into a build-and-operate deal with an international consortium (Zachry American Infrastructure and Cintra) to construct a 320-mile toll road for an upfront payment of $1.3 billion to the state and the right of the private owners to operate the toll road for 50 years. In California, a private company is building a nearly 10-mile, $800-million extension of Route 125 south of San Diego in exchange for a 35-year lease to operate the road and collect tolls.

Such deals bring welcome benefits to the transportation sector. A 2002 government study in Britain, where public-private transactions are more common, found that while 70% of construction undertaken by the government came in late, just 24% of projects contracted by government to private builders finished behind schedule.

Nevertheless, opponents of privatizations and private-public partnerships argue that private operators can only make money "at the expense of" taxpayers, and that the new owners will skimp on maintenance and repair work in order to squeeze profits out of these operations. These objections typically ignore the significant restrictions and operating requirements written into the contracts--here in the U.S. and around the world--which allow governments to cancel the deals, take back the roads and bridges and keep the cash if operators don't live up to the terms.

Taxpayers are protected by an even more powerful mechanism, namely consumer choice. The majority of toll roads, to take one example, are built as high-speed alternatives to already existing routes. If the roads become too expensive or unpleasant to drive, their owners risk losing business that they are counting on to make their investments successful.





Some objections to private ownership are simply cynical ploys by politicians looking to maintain their hold on public assets, especially since roads and bridges operated by transportation authorities are often job-patronage mills. Politicians from both parties in New Jersey railed against a recent study recommending leasing some of the state's toll roads, claiming such a deal would shortchange taxpayers. Of course, the state government is among the most bloated and costly for taxpayers in the country--and the Reason Foundation recently rated New Jersey roads worst in the nation. Yet the politicians worried that an auction, which could have raised some $20 billion for the fiscally challenged Garden State, might allow a private operator to take advantage of its citizens.
Transparent as they are, anti-privatization arguments can resonate with taxpayers who wonder whether such complex transactions will prove too good to be true. Public officials will need to spell out the benefits of these deals, hold buyers to exacting standards, and explain the steep cost of the alternatives: either allowing infrastructure to languish at the risk of tragedy, or hiking taxes. Public officials will also have to resist efforts to funnel privatization proceeds to politically popular programs or to short-term budget fixes, instead of using the money to further enhance their transportation infrastructure.

Difficult political battles are ahead. But for the first time in over a generation, America's mayors and governors are looking at a realistic way to jumpstart spending they've neglected for too long. The stakes are high. Traffic congestion already costs our economy about $65 billion a year in lost productivity. Research also suggests that every $100 million invested in road maintenance and repair will save about 145 lives over the next decade.

As Gov. Daniels told critics at a Congressional hearing last year: "Does no one notice the risk of inaction?"


http://www.opinionjournal.com/extra/?id=110010429