bridge News Updates

The condition of the nation’s large bridges has improved over the last decade, but state transportation officials have faced challenges constructing or completing major projects on large bridges over the past five years, according to a new report by a congressional watchdog agency.

This month marks the 10th anniversary of a deadly bridge collapse in Minnesota, which shaped one of the earliest conversations about structurally deficient bridges and the significant funding needed to fix or replace infrastructure nationwide.

Minnesota has repaired or replaced about 120 bridges in the past decade as part of a special funding program authorized after an Interstate 35W span plunged into the Mississippi River, killing 13 people and injuring 145 others.

Under legislation signed by Gov. Jerry Brown in April, California motorists will start paying higher gas and diesel taxes in November to provide funding for, among other state transportation projects, reducing the backlog of road and bridge repairs.

The Moroun family, owners of the Ambassador Bridge, have raised yet another challenge to the construction of a rival bridge — the Gordie Howe International Bridge.

This week, Canada's ambassador to the United States said his fellow Canadian officials are within weeks of issuing a long-awaited request for proposals that will seek a team to build the Gordie Howe International Bridge and disrupt the Ambassador Bridge's long-standing bridge monopoly.

Inadequate funding is hampering state departments of transportation and local agencies as they try to maintain or improve the condition of the bridges for which they’re responsible.

SAN FRANCISCO — A large gantry-type structure is in the offing at the Golden Gate Bridge as officials look to upgrade toll collection machinery.

A mechanical failure in the tower on the New Hampshire side of the Sarah Long Bridge that connects Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and Kittery, Maine, has caused the 76-year-old structure to be closed permanently.