Bridge Collapse Imminent I received another report today about bridge deficiencies in the United States. Yes another.. Another headline making report that talks about how bad and potentially dangerous many of the bridges in our country are today. A state by state analysis of bridges on the verge of collapse and states that have the worst record as the President and congress continue to debate infrastructure investment. I see this report from various sources a few times a year for years and quite frankly have no confidence that these are factual reports. Highlights: ƒ More than one third (37 percent) of U.S. bridges—nearly 231,000 spans—need repair work. More than 46,000 bridges are rated in poor condition and classified as “structurally deficient.” A total of 81,000 bridges should be replaced. ƒ While the number of structurally deficient (SD) bridges declined by 900 compared to 2018, it still would take more than 50 years to repair them all. ƒ Motorists drive cross these structurally deficient bridges 178 million times a day. ƒ Structurally deficient bridge, on average, are nearly 69 years old, compared to 44 years old for nondeficient bridges. ƒ One third of Interstate highway bridges (18,177 spans) have identified repair needs. Click Here to read more on this report. These reports do not tell the truth nor do they have basis in enough fact to be accurate, in my opinion. In fact our nation’s bridges are in a much worse state of repair than any of these reports even has the capacity to report again, in my opinion. The current methods used today to conduct the bi annual NBIS inspections i would describe as primarily manual, subjective and antiquated. Most inspections are taking place pretty much the same way they were 100 years ago. Don’t get me wrong, I am not putting down the way current inspections are conducted, they follow guidelines that were put out by Federal Highways AAshto and followed up with state regulators and the Department of transportation both at a state and district level. But following guidelines does not mean that the best methods are being used to insure the publics safety. Most of these guidelines are put into place only after a major incident like a bridge collapse by the time they are put into practice they are already outdated. Bridge Inspection Companies definitely don’t light up any political followings or currey any public applause like cutting the ribbon on a new multi billion dollar bridge. But it is the taxpayers dollar being spent to insurance taxpayer safety so shouldn’t those entrusted with those funds be using them in the publics best interest? With the state of available technology that can provide much more quantitative data for the same taxpayer dollar, shouldn’t the manual and subjective inspections be minimized. So why don’t i think these bridge reports are accurate..
Bridge Deck – Todays Chain Dragging VS BridgeScan® Dragging a chain to listen for changes in sound VS using technology to peer through the Asphalt and locate voids, rebar, water intrusion, delamination, debonding, create budgets and material required for repairs Cable Stayed Bridge InspectionTodays Visual inspection of the Sheathing VS CableScan® Inspection of sheathing and MRI like inspection of the interior steel that helps hold up the bridge. Blocking traffic and looking at the plastic that surrounds the steel that holds up the bridge vs peering through the sheething and locating loss of metallic area inside the steel Post Tension Tendon Inspection- Todays Visual inspection of the Sheathing VS TendonScan® Inspection of sheathing and MRI like inspection of the interior steel that helps hold up the bridge. High Mast Light Pole Inspection To the left current inspection of a pole from the ground. To the right a robotic pole climber inspecting 360 degrees of the pole, seams, luminaries, mast arms and bulb housings. As hard as it is to believe that these manual, subjective inspections are the current inspection methods being utilized, it is your tax dollars that is paying for them. These inspections are supposed to be about public safety. There is basic common sense lacking in some of the inspection methods that are still being utilized. Im not sure to what end when for the same taxpayer dollar being spent today an inspection that can provide the proper data to properly budget for repairs exists using available technology. We know that a bridge is in a state of disrepair when we see the rebar sticking out of the concrete or we can see the ocean through a hole in the deck just like you know your having a heart attack when your grabbing your chest and falling to the floor but what about all of those people that don’t have any warning signs and just drop dead? They must not have gone for their checkup or had someone look inside. Bridges are very large complex structures with many potential points of failure. Would you trust your health to liking the way you look in the mirror this morning or would you prefer to have a body scan, xray, mri, blood work to actually check the components that keep you healthy and assuming they cost the same. The tools to conduct this type of inspection exist today. I would have much more confidence in those infrastructure reports if technology was used to conduct the inspections. Quantitative replicable and reliable data. Data that can be collected without the billions lost in GDP due to lane closures and traffic delays, not mentioning the saving of lives from fewer traffic accidents and inspectors working at height. Once we start utilizing technology to inspect our bridges as the normal course of inspection, then i will start to believe the reports about its health. For more information please visit here: https://www.infrastructurepc.com/ Office: 727-372-2900 - info@infrastructurepc.com