Report: Thousands Of Bridges In US In Need Of Repair, Hundreds In Md. Alone

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- A new report reinforces that thousands of America's bridges are in desperate need of repair, and at the current rate, it would take more than two decades to repair bridges deemed structurally deficient.

Ava-joye Burnett has more on how Maryland stands in the rankings.

The new report says nearly 56,000 American bridges are structurally deficient, which means an element in the bridge is rated in "poor condition," or even worse.

Updated analysis from the Department of Transportation has found that those tens of thousands of bridges need some form of repair  -- a number that's alarming to drivers.

"I think the first word that comes to mind is scared," said Maryland driver Patrick Blair.  "I've definitely rode around and seen structurally deficient, but that is pretty scary."

Out of the 5,321 bridges in the state of Maryland, 308 are structurally deficient, which means some work needs to be done, and more than 1,000 are categorized as "functionally obsolete," meaning the bridge does not meet design standards in line with current practice.

Maryland transportation officials say drivers shouldn't be too alarmed because if there is any danger to the public, they won't hesitate to shut a bridge down, something they've done before.

"I'm not sure that I consider the bridges overall in poor condition in the state of Maryland, but certainly, we need to maintain an aggressive program to keep these bridges in good condition," said Glenn Vaughan with the Maryland Department of Transportation.

Even though the state performs better than others, the bridges here which have gotten poor grades are the main conveyor for hundreds of millions of drivers every single day, which experts say is a cause for concern.

"We have an under-performing system, and this is a chance each year when this data comes out, we can really take a deep dive and see what's going on with this system," said Allison Black, with the American Road & Transportation Builders Association.

In recent years, $2.7 billion dollars in federal funds have helped Maryland with its bridges, a fix that drivers welcome.

"I hope that state to state, we can build the infrastructure not only bridges, but just everything in general.

The report also revealed that 314 new bridges have been built in Maryland in the last decade. But the state also says another 1,620 bridges need repair, which could cost $2 billion.

According to Charlie Gischlar, Maryland State Highway Administration spokesman, SHA only owns and maintains about 2,565 of the more than 5,200 bridges in Maryland. Of those, he says 69 are considered structurally deficient, making the overall rate of structural deficiency about three percent, among the lowest in the nation.

Of the 69 inherited by Governor Hogan, 35 are either complete, underway or will be underway this spring. The other 34 are in design.

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