Tag: I-5 bridge collapse

Roadbuilding

Can your bridges withstand a hit by a heavy semi?

A disturbingly large number of America’s bridges are structurally deficient or functionally obsolete (see Better Roads’ November bridge inventory). But how many are “fracture-critical?” Washington State’s collapsed I-5 bridge was fracture-critical when it was hit by a heavily loaded truck. But it is far from alone in the state of Washington in that classification and […]

July 18, 2013

Roadbuilding

More than 200 Washington bridges are fracture-critical

More than 200 of Washington state’s bridges are classified as fracture-critical and could collapse if a key component of the bridge fails, according to KUOW. Of those bridges, at least three have been struck multiple times in the past five years, putting the bridges at a higher risk of collapsing. The Interstate 5 span that […]

July 17, 2013

Roadbuilding

I-5 temporary span opens to traffic

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) announced this morning that the Interstate 5 temporary span is now open to traffic, though the bridge has some restrictions. WSDOT is routing freight haulers carrying oversize or overweight loads around the temporary section of the bridge; maps and details about those detours are available at wsdot.wa.gov/Construction/PugetSound/detourmap. Vehicles […]

June 19, 2013

Roadbuilding

Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation discusses infrastructure investment at bridge collapse hearing

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies met Thursday for a hearing, where the committee examined the Interstate 5 bridge collapse in the context of the overall status of the nation’s transportation infrastructure. AASHTO Journal reported that Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) chaired the hearing, “Crumbling Infrastructure: Examining the Challenges […]

June 18, 2013

Roadbuilding

USDOT to release $15.6 million for I-5 bridge

Washington State Senator Patty Murray said on Thursday that the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) will releasing $15.6 million of the federal share for repair of the Interstate 5 bridge in Washington State that collapsed into the Skagit River three weeks ago, according to the Daily Journal and The Associated Press. Murray said outgoing Transportation […]

June 14, 2013

Roadbuilding

I-5 bridge expected to reopen in mid-June

Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) announced Monday that it plans to have the Interstate 5 Skagit River Bridge temporary span open sometime next week. The bridge has been closed since a portion of it collapsed into the Skagit River last month when a large truck struck a steel support. Crews working for WSDOT have […]

June 11, 2013

Roadbuilding

Senate Appropriations Committee to discuss I-5 bridge collapse

The Senate Committee on Appropriations during a hearing on Thursday will discuss the Interstate 5 bridge collapse that occurred in Washington State last month, according to AASHTO Journal. The hearing, “Crumbling Infrastructure: Examining the Challenges of our Outdated and Overburdened Highways and Bridges,” will look at the bridge collapse in the context of the overall […]

June 10, 2013

Business

LaHood expects big Obama announcement on transportation, comments on I-5 bridge collapse

During a recent talk before the Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) in Washington, D.C., outgoing Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood told those in attendance to expect a big announcement from President Barack Obama later this year concerning transportation infrastructure. “Once we get past immigration, guns, the sequester, I think the President is going to be big and bold […]

June 6, 2013

Roadbuilding

Lawmaker proposes bridge safety hearing

Representative Janice Hahn (D-CA) has called for Congress to hold a hearing on bridge safety when the return from recess, The Hill reported. The request follows last week’s Interstate 5 bridge collapse in Washington State as well as bridge collapse this week in Missouri that resulted from two trains colliding and striking a supporting pillar. […]

May 30, 2013

Roadbuilding

U.S. infrastructure spending has sharply declined in past five years

The collapse of the Interstate 5 bridge over the Skagit River in Washington State has sparked a number of conversations about infrastructure spending in the United States. Though the Skagit River Bridge was only considered functionally obsolete rather than structurally deficient (meaning it was built to older standards but not necessarily unsafe), some reports point […]

May 29, 2013

Roadbuilding

Washington governor announces I-5 bridge replacement plan

Washington State Governor Jay Inslee has announced the state’s plan to temporarily replace the collapsed portion of the Interstate 5 bridge over the Skagit River. A portion of the bridge collapsed Thursday night after an oversize truck struck an overhead steel support. The temporary four-lane bridge will carry I-5 traffic over the Skagit River at […]

May 28, 2013

Roadbuilding

2013’s bridges: A Skagit River reminder

Did the collapse of the I-5 bridge across the Skagit River in Washington State demonstrate a need for increased investing in our increasingly substandard transportation infrastructure, particularly bridges? One argument says no. Then it sort of says yes as well. “No” in that the bridge was not failing and in desperate need of repair. “Yes” […]

May 28, 2013