Washington Bridge Creaks as U.S. Repair Costs Increase
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The vintage-1925 Meridian Street bridge in Puyallup, Washington, creaks and shakes as 15,000 vehicles a day rumble over it, striking fear into the hearts of commuters like Robert Elkins.
Elkins, 45, said the May 23 collapse of a portion of the Interstate 5 bridge over the Skagit River, 95 miles (155 kilometers) north of Puyallup, brought home the degraded condition of his own community’s span. It’s one of 134 owned by Washington classified as “structurally deficient,” though transportation officials say there’s no imminent risk.