• eddstarr88
    • 1 year 6 months ago
    • Posts: 6887
    		 It was just a few minutes after 7pm on Thursday evening on May 23, 2013 when I saw the news flash - the Interstate 5 bridge over the Skagit River, 60 miles north of Seattle, just collapsed!

    Early reports said two, maybe three cars fell into the river but no fatalities. Investigators have concluded that a "wide-load" truck hauling a load measuring 15 feet, 9 inches crossed over the Skagit River Bridge on I-5, with a clearance height, at its lowest point, of only 14 feet, 6 inches.

    The truck driver responsible for the damage said there was no clearance height sign posted on the bridge.

    That's right, Washington state law doesn't require the clearance height to be posted unless a bridge is less than 14 feet, 5 inches high!

    Sign or no sign, Washington State has a history of penny-pinching major structures like highway bridges. Even today, the State of Washington is playing stupid with Oregon State officials over plans to build a new I-5 bridge at the Oregon/Washington border crossing - a MAJOR link in the national interstate highway system.

    Oregon State and the Federal government have their money on the table, ready to get started. Washington State officials are acting like 5th graders waiting for mom and dad to pay for everything.

    Washington ans Seattle are my home now. But that doesn't mean I won't rant when I see a wealthy state crying like a baby whenever money is needed for infrastructure repair or replacement.

    The Eldorado is dead. Long live the Eldorado.
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    • bassman21
      • 1 year 6 months ago
      • Posts: 4553
      		 This is one thing I like about Texas. We spend a lot of money on our highway system. The locals get tired of the construction, but when we travel to other states we appreciate it. New York, New Jersey and California are a joke. Three lanes on a freeway in a major city is unexceptionable here in Houston, but is common in those states. Most of our freeways are 5 to 6 lanes in each direction. Our side streets are also well maintained. One thing we have here that other states seem to lack are service road also known as frontage or feeder roads. In most states I have visited when you exit you are put right on the street. In Texas you usually exit the freeway on the service road and take the service road to the street you want to turn on. There are usually business on the service road and traffic lights at the intersections. The freeway usually go over the streets, but in some cases (usually on older freeways) the cross streets go over the freeway. If you don't want to get on the freeway you can drive the service road. We also have toll road and high occupancy vehicle lanes. However unlike some states toll road are optional as there are other routes. When I was up north you didn't have a choice and had to pay a toll to get where you want to go.

      As for bridges I can't think of any that I'm worried about collapsing.

      Here's is a website with an ebook that tells you everything you ever want to know about Houston's freeway system.

      http://houstonfreeways.com/

      Here's a drive on the fairly newly reconstructed Katy Freeway to downtown. The part at 4:30 is one of many old designs that bottle neck during rush hour. They need to be addressed because they make the rest back up.
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NI8WtGhFss
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      • eddstarr88
        • 1 year 6 months ago
        • Posts: 6887
        		 And you know this is exactly what I was thinking when the shock of the I-5 bridge collapse North of Seattle registered - Texas has always taken freeways seriously.

        Unlike Texas, Washington is one of those states that tried to do a freeway system on the cheap. Federal construction standards were relaxed when a few states complained about the cost of engineering to USDOT original requirements.

        Visitors to Washington State often comment on our poor standards of bridge construction. The I-5 bridge over the Skagit River north of Seattle is an example of a steel truss/concrete tee-beam design. I'm not used to seeing such an elementary bridge type meeting Interstate Highway standards.

        But now everyone in the nation knows that Washington State has been holding back when it comes to bridge design and maintenance.

        (I'm a fan of FreewayJim's Texas road videos) :D
        The Eldorado is dead. Long live the Eldorado.
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