Transportation & Roads
It’s agreed: bridges need work, but who will pay?
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By DANIELLE WOODWARD
Capital News Service
LANSING — Officials are predicting it will take $101 million annually in additional funding to save Michigan’s deteriorating bridges. State-owned bridges need about $70 million for repair and bridges owned by local agencies like counties, cities and villages need $31 million more, said Jeff Cranson, director of communications for the Michigan Department of Transportation. Gov. Rick Snyder recently announced that one in eight bridges is rated structurally deficient, meaning it needs to be monitored and inspected regularly. “Bridges are rated as structurally deficient, functionally obsolete or in good condition,” said Lance Binoniemi, vice president of governmental affairs at the Michigan Infrastructure and Transportation Association. The three major elements of a bridge are decks, beams and supporting substructure.