1
00:00:01,935 --> 00:00:06,139
>> That bridge opened in
1931. How aged are other

2
00:00:06,206 --> 00:00:09,510
bridge crossings in
Wisconsin? According to the

3
00:00:09,576 --> 00:00:12,679
National Bridge Inventory,
of the more than 14,000

4
00:00:12,746 --> 00:00:15,716
bridges in this state,
nearly a thousand are

5
00:00:15,782 --> 00:00:19,453
classified as what they call
structurally deficient. We

6
00:00:19,520 --> 00:00:23,891
turn to Wisconsin Dot Bureau
of Structures Director Josh

7
00:00:23,957 --> 00:00:26,527
Dietsche for more. And
thanks very much for being

8
00:00:26,593 --> 00:00:28,262
here.
to join.

9
00:00:30,864 --> 00:00:34,635
a bridge to be structurally
deficient?

10
00:00:34,701 --> 00:00:36,970
>> So it's a term that
probably sounds a little

11
00:00:37,037 --> 00:00:39,907
scarier than it is really.
It just means that there is

12
00:00:39,973 --> 00:00:42,709
something, some kind of
deterioration that's been

13
00:00:42,776 --> 00:00:45,712
noted with the bridge. We
always try to stress that.

14
00:00:45,779 --> 00:00:48,015
That doesn't mean it's
unsafe. If there's a bridge

15
00:00:48,081 --> 00:00:51,151
open in the state, open to
travel on. You can feel safe

16
00:00:51,218 --> 00:00:54,454
traveling across it.
>> So does Wisconsin have a

17
00:00:54,521 --> 00:00:56,790
lot of older bridges, like
the one like the Lansing

18
00:00:56,857 --> 00:00:59,660
Bridge?
>> Not many that are quite

19
00:00:59,726 --> 00:01:01,395
as old as.
>> The.

20
00:01:07,568 --> 00:01:10,437
average age of the bridge is
about 42 years old. So yeah,

21
00:01:10,504 --> 00:01:13,340
something as old as the
Lansing is a little bit

22
00:01:13,407 --> 00:01:16,410
atypical.
>> In Wisconsin. What

23
00:01:16,944 --> 00:01:20,480
specific bridges need
immediate repair or removal?

24
00:01:20,547 --> 00:01:24,117
Are there any?
>> Again, I would stress

25
00:01:25,419 --> 00:01:28,155
that if it's open, it's
safe. So we always have a

26
00:01:28,222 --> 00:01:30,190
program where we're going in
and rehabilitating or

27
00:01:30,257 --> 00:01:32,693
replacing bridges. So you
mentioned that there's over

28
00:01:32,759 --> 00:01:36,930
14,000 bridges in the state.
About 2% of those are

29
00:01:36,997 --> 00:01:39,399
classified as being in poor
condition. Kind of at a high

30
00:01:39,466 --> 00:01:42,135
level. We as we inspect
bridges, they get rated as

31
00:01:42,202 --> 00:01:45,339
either good, fair or poor.
And so again, with about 2%

32
00:01:45,405 --> 00:01:47,941
of those bridges in poor
condition, those are the

33
00:01:48,008 --> 00:01:49,676
ones that we're focusing on.
Again, not because they're

34
00:01:49,743 --> 00:01:51,512
unsafe, not because you
shouldn't be traveling over

35
00:01:51,578 --> 00:01:54,114
them, but just because
they're going to need some

36
00:01:54,181 --> 00:01:56,250
work to keep them in
service. In the near future.

37
00:01:56,316 --> 00:01:59,853
So those are the ones that
we've got in the program

38
00:01:59,920 --> 00:02:01,822
that are in the planning
stages for, you know, again,

39
00:02:01,889 --> 00:02:03,624
getting some kind of
rehabilitation or

40
00:02:03,690 --> 00:02:05,859
potentially being replaced.
>> How heavy of a lift is it

41
00:02:05,926 --> 00:02:08,762
to inspect all of these?
More than 14,000 bridges

42
00:02:08,829 --> 00:02:11,732
across the state of
Wisconsin?

43
00:02:13,100 --> 00:02:15,102
are surprised when we talk
about it that we do have

44
00:02:15,169 --> 00:02:18,138
that many bridges in the
state. You know, about the

45
00:02:18,205 --> 00:02:20,974
big ones that you travel
over. But there's so many

46
00:02:21,041 --> 00:02:23,243
that are over just small
creeks or small rivers that

47
00:02:23,310 --> 00:02:25,112
you probably don't even
realize where you're going

48
00:02:25,179 --> 00:02:28,148
over a bridge. So yeah, of
those 14,000, about 5000, a

49
00:02:28,215 --> 00:02:30,050
little over 5000 are owned
by the state, and the

50
00:02:30,117 --> 00:02:32,819
remainder then are owned by
local municipalities,

51
00:02:32,886 --> 00:02:35,189
cities, villages, towns, and
so on and so forth. So the

52
00:02:35,255 --> 00:02:37,824
state bridges are inspected
by mostly by state forces,

53
00:02:37,891 --> 00:02:40,260
although we do use
consultant engineers as

54
00:02:40,327 --> 00:02:43,897
well. And the same thing on
the local side, the local

55
00:02:43,964 --> 00:02:46,233
side, they do have some
local staff that will

56
00:02:46,300 --> 00:02:48,368
inspect bridges, but they
lean heavily on consultant

57
00:02:48,435 --> 00:02:51,872
engineers as well. So when
the bridges are in good

58
00:02:51,939 --> 00:02:54,408
condition, basically new,
they can be inspected on as

59
00:02:54,474 --> 00:02:57,211
much as a four year cycle.
But for the most part,

60
00:02:57,277 --> 00:02:59,580
bridges are required to be
inspected on a two year

61
00:02:59,646 --> 00:03:02,583
cycle or as they get in that
worst condition, into poor

62
00:03:02,649 --> 00:03:05,853
condition on a on an annual
basis. So yeah, it's a heavy

63
00:03:05,919 --> 00:03:08,555
lift depending on the size
of the bridge, it the larger

64
00:03:08,622 --> 00:03:11,425
bridges may take up to a
week to inspect some of the

65
00:03:11,491 --> 00:03:14,428
larger bridges. Like you
referenced the Lansing

66
00:03:14,494 --> 00:03:17,097
Bridge or some of our more
signature bridges. Others,

67
00:03:17,164 --> 00:03:19,333
you know, it can be done in
a morning or an afternoon.

68
00:03:19,399 --> 00:03:22,169
But yes, it's definitely a
pretty big effort.

69
00:03:22,236 --> 00:03:25,205
>> We took a look at the
work that's happening on

70
00:03:25,272 --> 00:03:29,810
that bridge from De Soto to
Lansing, and it made me

71
00:03:29,877 --> 00:03:34,014
wonder, how tricky is it to
repair bridges while they're

72
00:03:34,081 --> 00:03:37,651
still in use?
>> Yeah, it depends on the

73
00:03:38,418 --> 00:03:40,621
situation. You know,
obviously the traffic is a

74
00:03:40,687 --> 00:03:44,391
big thing that plays into
that, plays into that on.

75
00:03:44,458 --> 00:03:47,194
You know, if you're trying
to repair a bridge on the

76
00:03:47,261 --> 00:03:49,863
interstate, there's going to
be lane closures. There's a

77
00:03:49,930 --> 00:03:51,999
there's a large bridge over
the Wisconsin River just

78
00:03:52,065 --> 00:03:54,101
north of Portage that's
being replaced right now. If

79
00:03:54,168 --> 00:03:56,403
you've driven through that
area. And in that case,

80
00:03:56,470 --> 00:03:58,372
you'll see lane closures or
lane shifts. So it's

81
00:03:58,438 --> 00:04:01,575
definitely possible. But
yeah, it does present some

82
00:04:01,642 --> 00:04:04,444
complications for sure. But
again, we make we make sure

83
00:04:04,511 --> 00:04:08,682
to do it in a way that is
safe for sure. And as we try

84
00:04:08,749 --> 00:04:10,417
to minimize the disruption
to the traveling public as

85
00:04:10,484 --> 00:04:13,120
much as we can.
>> All right. Well, we are

86
00:04:13,187 --> 00:04:17,524
all glad to know that the
bridges are safe. John