Caltrans: Two In Three Bridges In Region 'Structurally Deficient'
By Denise Wong
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — Out of the 90 bridges in the region, about 60 of them have been deemed structurally deficient.
Caltrans crews examined the Interstate 80 overpass at Reed Avenue on Tuesday, a day after a CBS13 photographer witnessed concrete fall from it, narrowly missing cars.
Caltrans says it's a maintenance issue, not a structural one since it came off the railing, but there are about five-dozen other bridges in the area that do have structural problems.
"To put the public at ease, structurally deficient doesn't mean unsafe," said Caltrans spokesman Dennis Keaton.
But it does mean they need work. That could be anything from a paint job to repairing cracks.
"Today, we really don't have any severely bad bridges, and the reason I say that is because the ones that are deemed unsafe are either closed down completely," he said.
Safe or not, the roads need repairs that end up costing drivers.
Assemblyman Bill Dodd (D-Napa) hears it all on the state's transportation committee.
"They're already feeling this in the pocketbook because they have alignments they have to have for their cars, their tires that are being worn," he said.
In fact, deficient roadways end up costing each driver in Sacramento more than $1,500 a year, according to the transportation research group TRIP.
The state's transportation commission estimates $8 billion is needed to fix California's roads each year, but only $2.3 billion is actually being spent. That leaves $5.7 billion in maintenance and repairs currently unfunded.
Dodd says talks are ongoing about how to bridge that gap.
"By and large, the state of California, our highway system, we need help now," he said.
He says everything is on the table from general fund increases to raising the gas tax, though the latter may not be as productive as it was in the past with more fuel-efficient cars on the road.