State inspects I80 bridges again
Governor has proposed funding for aging infrastructure’s replacement
Inspectors this week are completing an annual examination of the Interstate 80 bridges that state officials say is done to assure they are safe to drive on, despite the need for repairs.
BY BOB OKON
BOKON@SHAWMEDIA.COM
Inspectors this week are completing an annual examination of the Interstate 80 bridges that state officials say is done to assure they are safe to drive on, despite the need for repairs. The bridges – one eastbound and one westbound – over the Des Plaines River have been described as a poster child for the state’s infrastructure problems, and their replacement is a priority in Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s $41.5 million “Rebuild Illinois” plan. The Illinois Department of Transportation plans to replace the bridges, but does not yet have the funding.
Bridge inspection reports from spring 2018 deem them, in a structural evaluation of both the eastbound and westbound bridges, as “intolerable,” while listing the westbound bridge as “high priority for replacement” and the eastbound bridge as “high priority for correction.” “When these terms show up, it doesn’t necessarily mean the bridge is unsafe,” said Carl Puzey, bureau chief for bridges and structures at IDOT, adding “it’s understandable these terms get attention.”
Read the full article at theherald-news.com.
Des Plaines Bridges News
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