58,000 bridges across the nation are structurally deficient
Recent analysis from the American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA) pointed at a large number of structural deficiencies in bridges across the United States.
According to the ARTBA, 58,500 bridges in the nation are considered to be structurally deficient as of the end of 2015. While this 2015 number is actually less than the more than 61,000 bridges found to have structural deficiencies one year earlier in 2014, it would still take more than two decades to replace or upgrade all bridges in question, the ARTBA said.
Nearly 59,000 U.S. #Bridges Still Structurally Deficient, New Analysis Finds https://t.co/XqnvDJOThn @USDOTFHWA pic.twitter.com/aoHDUP6Gap
— ARTBA (@ARTBA) February 18, 2016
Vehicles crossing deficient structures
The total of 58,500 deficient structures in 2015 is nearly 10 percent of all bridges in the country (610,000). And even more staggering — vehicles cross these deficient bridges more than 200 million times a day. A large number of these heavily used bridges in question reside on urban highways and especially in California, the ARTBA noted.
Iowa tops the list
The state of Iowa topped the list of total number of bridges needing attention with more than 5,000, followed by Pennsylvania, Oklahoma, Missouri and Nebraska.
Rhode Island grades poorly
While Iowa had the largest overall number of bridges labeled deficient, Rhode Island topped the list from a percentage standpoint. About 23 percent of bridges in Rhode Island need attention, followed by Pennsylvania and Iowa both at 21 percent, South Dakota at 20 percent, and Oklahoma at 16 percent.
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