Introduction
Almost a year ago, we as a nation were stunned and saddened by the tragic bridge collapse in Minneapolis that took 13 lives, injured 144 others, and disrupted the life of a great city.
In the intervening year we have watched with pride the way in which federal, state, and city transportation agencies, contractors, and construction teams have worked night and day to bring to life a new bridge, unsurpassed in technology and design.
Also in the past year we in the transportation industry have looked even more closely at the safety and sustainability of America’s 590,000 bridges for today and into the future.
This report was developed by the men and women of the state departments of transportation to share that inside look with you.
It talks about:
- How states cope with aging bridges;
- New technologies that have advanced the science of bridge inspections;
- The life of a bridge, and how it can be extended;
- Signature bridges that symbolize America’s communities;
- The truth about the resources we have to sustain our bridges, and the investment gap that must be closed.
It also relates real-life stories from Texas to Washington State about ways in which lives have been changed by the opening or closing of a bridge.
There is something about a bridge that stirs our spirits and captures our imaginations. Perhaps that is why a failure such as what happened in Minnesota is so crushing, and the resulting work toward a new beginning is so uplifting. On the anniversary of this tremendous loss, let us look forward to what America can still achieve.
John Horsley
Executive Director
