California’s bridges are in a sorry state, with those in Lake and Sonoma counties particularly so, according to an analysis by a national transportation advocacy group.
Transportation for America, a Washington-based group, issued a report recently that said 12.8 percent, or 3,135, of California’s 24.542 were structurally deficient. The state ranked 18th worst nationally.
The federal government defines structurally deficient as a bridge where at least one of its three key components — the superstructure, the substructure and the deck — was rated at 4 or less on a scale of 0 to 9, with nine being the best condition.
On the North Coast, Lake County ranked fourth in the state for structurally deficient bridges with 21.7 percent (26 out of 120), Sonoma County was eighth with 20.1 percent (121 out of 601) and Mendocino County was 52nd with 6.7 percent (22 out of 329). The bridges covered are 20 feet long or longer and include those maintained by the state, counties, cities and other agencies.
Lake County officials took issue with the report.
Lars Ewing, Lake’s assistant director of public works, said a bridge can be rated structurally deficient because it simply needs paint or has cracks in the deck’s pavement but the structure itself is not failing or in danger of failing.
He said that of the 26 problem Lake County bridges cited in the report, two are not part of the county-maintained system, four have been replaced with permanent bridges, three have been replaced with temporary bridges, seven have funding for replacement, two are pending funding approval and seven are targeted for repairs or general maintenance.
Tom O’Kane, deputy director of the Sonoma County Transportation and Public Works Department, said the county has some bridges that were built about a century ago and, as a result, not all meet today’s federal standards.
He indicated his department’s challenge in fixing bridges is getting Caltrans approval to do so. He noted the county is starting to retrofit the Annapolis Road bridge but the county started seeking approval for the work in the mid-1990s.
O’Kane said financing for retrofitting of six other bridges has been approved but Caltrans now is considering taking the money back
To find data about specific local bridges, CLICK HERE to go the group’s website and type in the city or county you’re interested in.
