The collapse of the Fern Hollow Bridge in January 2022 brought national attention to the state of weak infrastructure of the country. Coincidentally, President Joe Biden was in Pittsburgh at the time of the crash promoting the bill that had just been passed. Bipartisan infrastructure law. Comments from a recently retired city official shed some light on how bad the maintenance of the bridge, or the lack of it, is in Pittsburgh.
Tom Joyce, former executive director at Pittsburgh’s Department of Mobility and Infrastructure, tell WTAE about resistance he faces as he tries to properly maintain many of the city’s bridges. He told the broadcaster, “Just cleaning out the trash cans, simple maintenance will go a long way. And they never did. They just started doing it last year. If you just do simple maintenance and clean them once a year, the bridge will last a lot longer.” Well, Joyce explained that the city doesn’t clean the bridge even once a year.
According to the National Transportation Safety Board, the lack of bridge maintenance is the root cause of the the collapse of the Fern Hollow Bridge. Clogged drains cause corrosion that causes problems. Approximately $25.3 million cost to replace, funding that could have been spent more effectively elsewhere.
Pittsburgh doesn’t spend a lot of money on bridge maintenance. WTAE found the city spent just $1.6 million on bridge maintenance over a four-year period. For comparison, Cincinnati, Ohio spends $1 million annually maintaining its bridges. Mayor Ed Gainey, who took office after the crash, agreed with Joyce’s remarks. Pittsburgh is beginning to perfect, but there are still many years to go before all of its bridges are up to standard.
Residents have noted the bridges they see every day are rusting and crumbling right before their eyes. Due to staffing problems, the West Carson Street Bridge and South Negley Avenue Bridge are considered particularly bad shape but will not be repaired until 2026 and 2027.
