Bridges Ranked ‘Structurally Deficient’ Are Not Unsafe

Sixteen bridges in Sullivan County are structurally deficient, the Tennessee Department of Transportation has announced.

The term “structurally deficient” means the bridge may be damaged or deteriorated but not necessarily to a critical point where safety is an issue.

“This whole terminology of being ‘structurally deficient’ doesn’t mean a bridge is unsafe,” said Travis Brickey, a TDOT spokesman. “It may be that it needs repaving or painting, and it may mean some bolts are rusting or some brick needs replacement. But TDOT takes safety very seriously. If a bridge is unsafe, it’s closed.”

The Sullivan County bridges are among more than 19,000 state and locally maintained bridges that are structurally deficient across the Volunteer State.

TDOT inspects and is responsible for 8,113 bridges known as “on system” or those found along the interstate or state highways.

The remaining 11,406 structures are known as “off system” bridges that fall under the jurisdiction of counties, cities and towns in Tennessee.

The on-system bridges cited under the structurally deficient heading in Sullivan County include Kingsport’s Hammond Bridge at Fort Henry Drive over the Holston River; U.S. Highway 19E at Indian Creek near the Carter County line; South Wilcox Drive in Kingsport over the South Fork of the Holston River; and state Route 394 over Reedy Creek in the Blountville area, according to TDOT.

Work to renovate the Hammond Bridge has been under way since late last year.

The state also plans to tear down the bridge on state Route 75 and rebuild a new, four-lane bridge. The bridge is being replaced to handle more traffic volume, not because it is structurally deficient.

Meanwhile, funding for off-system, or locally maintained bridges in Sullivan County, is in limbo for now since the county has not yet finalized its budget for the fiscal year, which began July 1.

“We’ve got projects we want to do, but we’ll have to wait and see how much money we’ll have,” said James Montgomery, a surveyor with the county’s highway department. “If it’s a simple repair, we’ll run out and do it right now. If a beam goes bad, for example, we’ll run out and replace it today. Anything major – well, we’d have to wait.”

Structurally deficient is an engineering term that’s generally used to help communicate to the federal government which bridges are in need of funding for repairs or replacement, Julie Oaks, a TDOT spokeswoman who helped assemble the report, said Tuesday.

“There are three parts of the bridge that are looked at to determine the bridge’s rating: the sub-structure [piers]; the super-structure [beams] and the deck,” she said. “The example our Chief Engineer Paul Degges gave yesterday [Monday] was a large pothole on a bridge deck. That would likely mean the deck needs replacing or repairing and would therefore mean the bridge is structurally deficient – but it’s certainly not a safety risk.”

It’s important to note that TDOT bridge inspection crews have the authority to close a bridge at any time if they are concerned about its structural integrity, Oaks added.

TDOT released a “State of Tennessee Bridges” report on Monday, nearly a year after the Aug. 1 collapse of an Interstate 35W bridge in Minneapolis, which crumbled into the Mississippi River, killing 13 and injuring more than 100.

The average age of bridges locally and across Tennessee is 43 years, and one out of every four bridges needs to be modernized or repaired, according to the state report.

TDOT dedicated more than $130 million to the replacement and repair of Tennessee’s bridges in fiscal year 2007-08 and will dedicate another $116.6 million in fiscal year 2008-09.

“Tennessee is fortunate to have one of the best transportation systems in the nation, including a first-rate bridge program,” TDOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely said during a news conference in Nashville.  “We have invested more than $1.7 billion in bridges in the last two decades and will continue that commitment into the future.”

The department is in the process of implementing additional training for bridge evaluators. TDOT also is updating its load permitting process to enhance the department’s ability to issue permits, and it is contracting with the U.S. Geological Survey to use sonar scan technologies to enhance underwater bridge inspections for some bridges, Oaks said.

TDOT also is partnering with the Tennessee Historical Commission and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation to implement a new program to save some historic bridges. The goal is to assist communities interested in preserving historic bridge structures for the public road system, pedestrians or other adaptive uses.

“Tennesseans can rest assured that we are working hard to keep Tennessee’s bridges safe,” said Degges, TDOT’s chief engineer. “Our bridge inspection program is constantly cited as one of the best in the nation and was one of only three in the U.S. to complete all inspections on time in 2007, but we know there is room for improvement.”

An accompanying report issued Monday by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials underscored the safety of U.S. bridges but also pointed out that one out of every four needs to be modernized or repaired. 

A recent assessment average from federal highway agencies to fix or replace bridges nationwide currently stands at $140 billion.

The report, “Bridging the Gap: Restoring and Rebuilding the Nation’s Bridges,” outlines some critical challenges ahead, including:

* Age – Usually built to last 50 years, the average bridge age in this country is 43, with one in five bridges more than 50 years old.
* Traffic congestion – Many of the nation’s large-scale bridges have become chokepoints on the country’s freeway system, and a drain on the nation’s economy.
* Soaring construction costs – The costs of steel, asphalt, concrete and earthwork have risen by at least 50 percent in the past five years, forcing delays of bridge improvements and replacements in nearly every state.

The report also points to these solutions: 

* Increased investment in transportation at all levels of government.
* Support for a wide range of revenue options such as tolls, tax increases, annual road-user fees, bonds or private investment.
* Continued commitment to research and innovation.
* Systematic maintenance to extend the life of bridges.
* Increased public awareness that bridges are vital links to businesses and communities.

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