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5 Of State's Bridges Similar To Minneapolis Bridge Rated Poorly

State Has 16 Deck Truss Bridges

UPDATED: 3:27 pm CDT August 4, 2007

The state has 16 bridges similar to the one that collapsed in Minneapolis and state records show that five of them are considered deteriorating or not meeting current design standards.

VIDEO: Watch The Report | INTERACTIVE: Bridges State By State

This week, state inspectors will begin the month-long process of visiting the 16 deck-truss bridges. Transportation Secretary Frank Busalacchi has ordered a review of the routine inspection reports for Wisconsin's more than 1,300 bridges.

Busalacchi said that there's no cause for concern, according to a news release.

"Right now, there is nothing to indicate the deck truss design played any role in the Minnesota tragedy," Busalacchi was quoted as saying in the news release. "But because public safety remains our top priority, we are proceeding with the inspections as a precautionary measure."

All 16 of the deck truss bridges have been inspected since June 2006. All of them are at least 50 years old.

The Transportation Department's Beth Cannestra said that once more is known about the cause of the collapse in Minneapolis, inspectors will likely have to revisit the bridges.

Town of Fulton resident Bruce Newton uses the Highway 51 deck-truss bridge in Rock County daily. He said the Minneapolis bridge collapse has changed his perspective of the bridge.

"You assume it's going to stay there. And when something like this happens, you just got to go back and look at it and say, 'It could happen here too.'" Newton said.

The Department of Transportation said that deck-truss bridges like the one in Rock County will eventually have to be replaced.

Bridges designed today are built to last 100 years. Experts said they thought bridges built in the 1930s would last more than 75 years.

Officials said that in a deck truss bridge, the superstructure typically consists of two parallel trusses that are the main load-carrying members of the bridge and the roadway is placed on top of the main members.

The state's deck truss bridges are:

  • State Highway 32/Main Street crossing Fox River in Brown County.
  • State Highway 35 crossing the St. Croix River in Burnett County.
  • State Highway 82 crossing Winneshiek Slough in Crawford County.
  • State Highway 82 crossing the Mississippi River in Crawford County.
  • Interstate 94 West crossing the Red Cedar River in Dunn County.
  • Interstate 94 East crossing the Red Cedar River in Dunn County.
  • County Highway BB crossing Tainter Lake in Dunn County.
  • State Highway 27 crossing the Eau Claire River in Eau Claire County.
  • State Highway 82 crossing the Wisconsin River in Juneau County.
  • State Highway 16 East crossing the La Crosse River in La Crosse County.
  • U.S. Highway 14/U.S. Highway 61 and State Highway 16 crossing the Mississippi River in La Crosse County.
  • State Highway 16/State Highway 71/Wisconsin Avenue crossing the Soo Line Railroad in Monroe County.
  • Wisconsin Highway 243 crossing the St. Croix River in Polk County.
  • U.S. Highway 51 crossing the Rock River in Rock County.
  • St. Croix/Main Street in Somerset crossing the Apple River in St. Croix County.
  • U.S. Highway 53/Main Street crossing Beaver Creek in Trempealeau County.



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