3,170 bridges in Mississippi "structurally deficient"

[HeeBGBz]

http://www.sunherald.com/278/story/112196.html
RECOVERY CONTINUES
About 3,000 bridges in state have problems

Of the 5,600 bridges in Mississippi, more than 3,000 have a "structurally deficient" rating and 1,290 are "functionally obsolete," according to the database.

In the three Coast counties, 109 bridges are listed as structurally deficient or functionally obsolete. The rating data was provided to the Sun Herald by the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting.

"Once a bridge is listed as structurally deficient, we either lower speed limits and weight limits or close the bridge," said Wayne Brown, MDOT's Southern District commissioner. "But to think you can tear them all down and rebuild them, that's just not possible."

Comforting to know. I drive across three bridges 4 times a day on my way to and from work.

[Maddy McCall]

1. I wonder which of the MS/LA Mississippi River Bridges are deficient.

Those are over a mile long, each--the ones in Vicksburg and Natchez.

[HeeBGBz]

2. Like those ones with swamps and gators underneath

Those kind of freak me out.

[Melynn]

3. And what will be done about?

Nothing under this President. Look for more disasters.

[sandnsea]

4. Bridge Inventory Chart

Lists total number by state, haven't found an easy search by bridge yet

http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/bridge/defbr06.htm

[riverdale]

5. whom are you supposed to believe

According to today's USA Today, MS has the best bridges in the country. Page 4, front section has a state-by-state chart. MS has 766 bridges, one is deficient. This is far better than any other state.

[BlooInBloo]

6. Hell - the state *itself* is structurally deficient.

[wadlee]

7. One bridge collapsing doesn't increase the likelyhood of another one collapsing.

I know, that's obvious, but we always let our emotions take over with things like this. I can't remember another bridge collapse ever, due to a structural failure.
Everytime something like this happens, people are all up in arms for the government to spend more of our money to fix the "problem". Well, one major bridge every 20 years is not, in my opinion, a problem that needs fixed.
There is a risk inherent in everything. Money cannot eliminate that, it can only lessen the risk. The relationship of risk to money spent is exponential. At some point, in order to minimize the risk a measurable amount, it is going to take more money than we have. This is where the acceptable cost/risk ratio comes in to play.
What ratio is acceptable? I don't know. That's not my area of expertise. But unless one understands this, one should not be calling for more money to be thrown at what might or might not be a problem.
Politicians don't need our encouragement to use our money to fund their finance, by way of throwing our money at this "problem", so they can tell us how great they are.

[HeeBGBz]

8. If you are in a hurricane zone, the odds rise a bit.

We lost about 3 or 4 in 05 just in the coastal counties. It doesn't help if they are deficient to start with.

No need to throw money at the infrastructure when we can throw it at Iraq, eh?

[unhappycamper]

11. Buh-bye

[Selatius]

9. I cross the I-110 bridge daily to work in Biloxi.

The Ocean Springs-Biloxi bridge was annihilated during Katrina. Strangely, the I-110 bridge was never closed for inspections after Katrina as far as I could tell, even though the entire peninsula was under water with heavy debris butting up against the bridge columns.

[radfringe]

10. the Minneapolis bridge collapse

is a metaphor for the entire bush/republic regime

building bridges to no where, while bridges to somewhere collapse