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December 3rd, 2014
As I was relaxing on a recent Sunday night, the show 60 Minutes came on to CBS with a very interesting topic for those of us living in Pittsburgh and throughout the Ohio Valley. The title of the segment was: "Falling Apart: America's Neglected Infrastructure," and the preview indicated that the segment would focus on the current condition of bridges in America. Like most people who cross at least one bridge during their commute through the City of Bridges, my wife drives over the Fort Pitt Bridge while heading to work and, needless to say, the show grabbed my attention.
During the first commercial, before the show began, I was wondering if it would discuss Pittsburgh. My question was soon answered, as the show began by showing pictures of the Liberty Bridge and many of Pittsburgh's other identifiable structures. The statistics presented in the show were alarming. According to the government, there are 70,000 bridges across the country that have been deemed "structurally deficient," which means the bridges need to be replaced or repaired in a dramatic way.
While there were many cities mentioned, Pittsburgh was one of the three examples in the segment. A past president of the American Society of Civil Engineers led a helicopter tour around Pittsburgh and stated that, "there are more than 4,000 bridges in metropolitan Pittsburgh and 20 percent of them are structurally deficient." The show continued by discussing the Liberty Bridge, which was built in 1928 and designed to last for 50 years.
After watching the show, I decided to do a little research for myself; after all, the news media loves a good story and no one would watch a segment on the safety of Pittsburgh's bridges. Currently, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation ("PennDOT"), Pennsylvania has the third-largest number of bridges in the nation and leads the nation in the number of bridges classified as "structurally deficient." However, PennDOT has a different take on the term "structurally deficient." According to PennDOT, a bridge classified as structurally deficient does not mean it is unsafe and, instead, indicates that the bridge has deterioration to at least one of its major components. PennDOT continued by stating that structurally deficient bridges are safe, as the State of Pennsylvania monitors bridges and would close or limit a bridge's use if it was unsafe.
In order to combat the current problems facing our bridges, PennDOT has spent over $670 million to preserve more than 2,200 bridges through the Bridge Preservation Program. Moreover, new weight restrictions are being added to approximately 1,000 bridges statewide and other measures are being taken to ensure safe travel.
While the problems with Pennsylvania's bridges cannot be ignored, there have also been many positive news stories covering the Steel City. In addition to continuously being named one of America's most livable and educated cities, Pittsburgh has also fought to keep and bring jobs to the region. For example, with rumors that U.S. Steel may move its headquarters outside of Pennsylvania, a recent announcement stated the company would instead be moving its headquarters to a new building that will be constructed where the Civic Arena once stood. Moreover, technology giant, Google, has confirmed it will expand its Pittsburgh office by 66,000 Square Feet at Bakery Square 2.0, which is currently under construction.
As I was relaxing on a recent Sunday night, the show 60 Minutes came on to CBS with a very interesting topic for those of us living in Pittsburgh and throughout the Ohio Valley. The title of the segment was: "Falling Apart: America's Neglected Infrastructure," and the preview indicated that the segment would focus on the current condition of bridges in America. Like most people who cross at least one bridge during their commute through the City of Bridges, my wife drives over the Fort Pitt Bridge while heading to work and, needless to say, the show grabbed my attention.
