With the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, the gateway to the Port of Baltimore, Maryland, safety issues are being raised about whether other bridges are okay.
The Key Bridge collapsed last week after colliding with a ship, killing six people, and forcing the indefinite closure of the country’s 15th-largest port, causing billions of dollars in economic damage. Some have pointed out that safety inspections on the old bridge are necessary, but others are also pointing out that only after the bridge collapses is it belatedly being repaired. The bridges that cross Chesapeake Bay include not only the Key Bridge, but also the Chesapeake Bay Bridge, 20 miles south, near Annapolis.
CNN quoted experts as saying, “The Bay Bridge could also be at risk of collapsing if it collides with a ship,” and pointed out, “Like the Key Bridge, the 4-mile-long Bay Bridge also has design problems.”
Adel ElSafty, an engineering professor at the University of North Florida, said, “They say there was a lack of safety measures in relation to the collapse of the Key Bridge, but the design needs to be reviewed,” adding, “It is a very vulnerable structure in case of a collision with a ship.”
Experts examined bridges located in more than a dozen major ports across the country and found that most of them had stronger structures and defensive features against ship collisions than the Key Bridge, but many other bridges, including the Bay Bridge, were designed without considering the risk of collisions, making it difficult for large cargo ships to pass under them. He warned that passing through could lead to potential danger. He also pointed out that the authorities’ unfounded confidence is also bringing risks.
A spokesperson for the Louisiana Department of Transportation said on air that he was confident that “New Orleans’ major bridges are safe with a triple-protection design,” but an engineer dismissed it as “nonsense.”
Due to the collapse of the Key Bridge, officials in each region are reviewing safety again from a new perspective. Authorities in Delaware and Pennsylvania have invested a huge amount of money to protect bridges near the Port of Philadelphia, installing concrete structures and reinforcing them by piling rocks around piers, and the Maryland Department of Transportation began a safety inspection of the Bay Bridge on the 2nd.
The Bay Bridge is currently under construction to improve parts of the aging road deck and steel structure, but no additional protection against ship collisions has been included, and only road expansion plans are being studied to relieve severe traffic congestion.