District 12: How Many Bridges Near Charlotte In Need Of Repair?

Charlotte NC

11 February, 2022

10:13 AM

Description

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA — A new report from a road contractors' lobbying group lists 43,578 bridges across the country that are "structurally deficient" and in danger of collapsing. The report from the American Road and Transportation Builders Association, based on data downloaded Jan. 3, lists 18 structurally deficient bridges in North Carolina's 12th Congressional District. That's 2.5 percent of bridges. Repairs are needed on 165 bridges in the district, which will cost an estimated $183.9 million. To view the full list of bridges, click here. A bridge is deemed structurally deficient if the deck, superstructure or substructure are in poor condition, or if the culvert below it is in poor condition, according to government definitions. Earlier this year, the Transportation Department targeted about 15,000 crumbling bridges for repair in a five-year, $27 billion program — the largest dedicated bridge investment in U.S. history since the interstate highway system was authorized in the 1950s. The condition of the nation's bridges was spectacularly illustrated with the Pittsburgh bridge collapse in January. The same day, President Joe Biden visited the area to tout his $1 trillion infrastructure program and dedicated funding to fix bridges. This is the eighth year the road and bridge contractors group has compiled the inventory of crumbling bridges. It's based on reports submitted to the U.S. Department of Transportation by the agency's state counterparts for inclusion in the National Bridge Inventory. The American Road and Transportation Builders Association is a lobbying group whose 28 political action committees gave more than $2.6 million to political candidates in 2019-2020, including about $518,270 to Democrats and $2.15 million to Republicans, according to OpenSecrets.org.