Bridges Are Collapsing and the Candidates Aren’t Talking About It

Maybe it is finally time to have an Infrastructure Week—for real.

To understand why, we have to go to Pittsburgh on a notably cold and snowy morning in January 2022, when Fern Hollow Bridge collapsed into a ravine in Frick Park. The bridge, and the vehicles on it at the time, including cars and a Port Authority bus, fell more than 100 feet.

In its analysis of the disaster, the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) identified systemic failure by bridge inspection companies, the city and state as the cause of the collapse. Despite being inspected multiple times over the years, these maintenance problems were not effectively addressed, leading to the disastrous collapse.

The NTSB’s investigation brought to light the wider problem of inadequate bridge maintenance across the United States. It warned that thousands of bridges, not limited to those constructed from uncoated weathering steel like the Fern Hollow Bridge, are in danger of similar collapses due to neglected maintenance and insufficient care. The report stressed the critical need for prioritizing the maintenance and repair of bridges to avert future disasters.

But none of this happened. In fact, Pittsburgh’s bridges in 2024 are significantly more dangerous than two years ago.

Just in Pittsburgh, 96 of the city’s 147 bridges (66 percent) either need “critical attention,” or have “high-priority issues,” according to the city’s Mayor Ed Gainey.

If this story was just about bridges or just began and ended in Pittsburgh it would be bad enough. But the reality is much scarier.

As is the case in Pittsburgh, many bridges and levees in the United States are more than half a century old, exceeding their intended lifespan and facing increased risks of failure, especially under extreme weather conditions like hurricanes and floods. But this is only the beginning of the story as the foundation for the next disasters is evident all over the country.

In Washington, D.C., the Metro system—once regarded as among the nation’s best—now faces significant challenges due to underinvestment and political dysfunction, requiring potential line closures for extensive repairs.

A substantial portion of public roads in the U.S. are in poor or mediocre condition, leading to issues like traffic congestion and safety concerns. Additionally, billions of gallons of treated water are lost daily due to aging water systems.

The U.S. has a significant infrastructure funding gap, with estimates suggesting a shortfall of $2.6 trillion in 2023. This underinvestment poses risks to economic growth, public safety, and national security.

On top of this, U.S. infrastructure is generally outdated and ill-prepared for modern challenges like climate change. Rebuilding infrastructure is crucial not only for safety but also for economic growth, national resiliency, and global competitiveness.

So where do we go from here? What can other cities do to prevent their own Fern Hollow?

That brings us back to former President Donald Trump’s attempt at “Infrastructure Week,” which he repeatedly invoked as a time to foster bipartisan discussions on revitalizing America’s infrastructure, such as roads, bridges, and broadband. The initiative first launched in June 2017 and aimed to roll out extensive infrastructure plans, with budgets proposed between $1 trillion to $2 trillion over several years. Despite the ambitious announcements, the efforts consistently encountered interruptions from controversies, investigations, resignations, and various distractions, steering attention away from infrastructure goals. As a result, despite numerous promises and attempts, a comprehensive infrastructure plan never fully materialized during Trump’s term in office.

“Inspections of bridges and infrastructure are crucial to detect any signs of wear or structural problems early on,” said Jason Matusz, an attorney representing the plaintiffs in the Fern Hollow case.

Ask yourself this entirely un-rhetorical question: If 66 percent of Pittsburgh bridges are a disaster waiting to happen, what’s the percentage in your city?

Part of what can come out of an infrastructure week (or month or year, for that matter) is, as Matzus suggests, what Pittsburgh needed—”An increased communication and collaboration among city, state, and federal authorities in swiftly identifying and addressing maintenance needs, thereby averting disasters.”

Is any of this going to happen, or will other cities do the same deadly calculus Pittsburgh clearly did—to ignore and avoid until the unthinkable happens?

What should give us pause—every single day—is that none of us know the answer.

A Pulitzer Prize-nominated writer, Aron Solomon, JD, is the chief strategy officer for Amplify. He has taught entrepreneurship at McGill University and the University of Pennsylvania, and was elected to Fastcase 50, recognizing the top 50 legal innovators in the world. Aron has been featured in Newsweek, Fast Company, Fortune, Forbes, CBS News, CNBC, USA Today, ESPN, Abogados, Today’s Esquire, TechCrunch, The Hill, BuzzFeed, Venture Beat, The Independent, Fortune China, Yahoo!, ABA Journal, Law.com, The Boston Globe, and many other leading publications across the globe.

The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.