Two bridges too far?

The Illinois Road and Transportation Builders Association (IRTBA) says the closure of two high-traffic volume bridges on the same February day points to the need for more immediate capital investment in the state’s infrastructure.

In a February 11 news release, the IRTBA references “two major Chicago area arteries [that] experienced structural failures on bridges” on the same day. The groups says Lake Shore Drive northbound will be closed indefinitely, while motorists on the Interstate 290 Eisenhower Expressway “suffered from falling concrete from an overhead bridge.”

States IRTBA President & CEO Mike Sturino, “These are just two of the latest examples of what happens when Springfield [the Illinois state capital] and Washington legislators utterly fail to address Illinois’ infrastructure needs. The time to act is now.”

According to the 2018 ARTBA (American Road & Transportation Builders Association) Bridge report, of the 26,775 bridges in the state of Illinois, slightly more than 2,300, or 8.6 percent, are classified as structurally deficient.

The IRTBA says that classification means one of the key elements of each of those bridges is in poor or worse condition. Of the 2,300 structurally deficient bridges in the state, 150 are on the interstate highway system, says the group.

The IRTBA consists of member firms that design, build, and maintain state highways, transit systems, railways, and aviation systems in Illinois.