It will take time to determine why a freeway bridge in Minneapolis collapsed last week, but this much is certain: pretending that such a disaster can't happen here is a deadly delusion.
Gov. Chris Gregoire has ordered an updated report on the condition of the state's bridges, and state Department of Transportation engineers will be reviewing current inspection reports to see whether more thorough examinations are needed. The state's bridge inspection and maintenance programs have been aggressive in recent years, so there's reason to have confidence in the structural integrity of the vast majority of spans local drivers use.
There are, however, two large, heavily used exceptions: the Alaskan Way viaduct and the Highway 520 floating bridge across Lake Washington. Engineers have long warned that the two structures are in danger of failure - the viaduct in an earthquake, the floating bridge in a major storm.
We've already seen it happen. Remember the 1989 Bay Area earthquake, when double-deck Nimitz Freeway collapsed, killing 42 people? How about the sinking of the Hood Canal Bridge in 1979, or of the I-90 floating bridge on Lake Washington in 1990? Yet these two clear dangers remain, one awaiting funding for a replacement, both awaiting design.
The city of Seattle and the state have been unable to agree on the design of a viaduct replacement, even with $2.8 billion already dedicated to it. Lives are at stake, not to mention the ability to move goods and people around the region. If the Minneapolis tragedy doesn't get officials in the mood to compromise and get started, what in the name of public safety will?
And while the roads and transit package on the November ballot can't be considered an infrastructure-maintenance measure, it does include $1.1 billion for the 520 bridge which, combined with tolls and other revenues, should be enough to replace it. Each year the current, aging structure stays in service, it becomes more of a potential danger.
