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08/02/2007: "A Grim Warning"
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All of us are witnessing with amazement and shock the recovery efforts currently underway at the site of the bridge collapse in Minneapolis. The death toll is currently 4, but will go much higher as the cars still trapped under the tons of debris are pulled out of the water of the Mississippi. With all the devastation it could have been much, much worse, as the number of cars on the bridge at the time of the collapse was relatively small.
We as a society are quick to spend money for new things, but not nearly so interested in maintaining what we already have. As we saw in New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, infrastructure requires ongoing investment if you expect it to be there when you need it. It doesn't matter if it's levees and dams, or bridges and roadways - if you don't spend the money required to maintain your property, it will fail.
The press will hammer the politicians for not allocating enough money to insure the safety of the bridge in question, and the pols will promptly show the examples of bond measures that would have provided the funds - had they been approved by the public. It's no different that the roof over your house. It's not enough to pay to have one installed - you need to inspect, repair and, when necessary, replace it. Otherwise, you get rain in your face. In this case, a questionable bridge remained unrepaired, and people died. As was the case in LA after the Northridge quake, when there was a big push to retrofit highway bridges after several collapsed, there will be a call to upgrade the hundreds of thousands of bridges that span America. Remember this day when the ballot comes out next time asking for money.
On a personal note, I actually drove over the bridge in question last spring. I was attending a week of software training at our supplier's facility in Eagan, a suburb just south of Minneapolis. It was February, and colder than a welldigger's ass, which kept the sightseeing to a minimum. On the last day in town, though, I decided to take a driving tour of Minneapolis and St. Paul. I mapped out a tour up I-35W that went through downtown Minneapolis, past the Metrodome, and crossed the Mississippi using this very bridge. The bridge itself wasn't memorable, but I can recall the crossing for two reasons - it was the first time I'd ever seen the Mississippi River frozen over, and there was a shipping lock just to the left of the bridge, something I'd never seen before (ironically, I just saw another set of locks last week in Seattle). I'd love to tell you there was something strange about the bridge, but there wasn't - just another of the hundreds of freeway spans I've driven in my life. Only this one decided to fail yesterday. Makes you wonder - and worry - about the rest ...
