State of isle bridges
improving, study saysBut the progress falls short
compared with nationwide statistics
The condition of Hawaii's highway bridges has improved over the past decade, but they are still in bad shape when compared with bridges nationwide, an Associated Press analysis shows.
The computer analysis of Federal Highway Administration data shows that 522 of Hawaii's state and county highway bridges were considered deficient by federal standards last year, down 5.1 percent from 550 in 1992.
The 522 deficient state and county bridges represent 43.5 percent of the 1,200 highway bridges in Hawaii, an improvement from 10 years ago when about half were considered deficient, said Scott Ishikawa, state Department of Transportation spokesman.
However, the AP analysis shows that 28 percent of bridges nationwide were considered deficient -- they need repairs, cannot adequately handle traffic loads or do not meet safety standards -- in 2002. Furthermore, the number of deficient bridges nationwide declined 18 percent, to 163,010 in 2002 from 199,090 in 1992, the analysis shows.
Hawaii's Transportation Department plans to upgrade 15 bridges statewide to meet federal standards within the next five years, Ishikawa said. The state will receive federal funding for a portion of the cost.
Ishikawa said bridge improvements are expensive, and having to shut them down to reroute traffic can be difficult.
"I think we're doing the best we can in making these improvements, but we're competing with all these other states for federal money," Ishikawa said.
Though they may be safe, one-lane bridges will always remain on the list because they do not meet federal standards, Ishikawa said. He cited the Hanalei Bridge on Kauai, which was improved last month but will remain on the list.
"Like with Hana, I don't think there's going to ever be public support to widen the bridges because of their historic background," he said.
The Halawa Bridge near Aloha Stadium and two Windward Oahu bridges, Waiahole and South Punaluu, are among the Hawaii spans in line for improvement.
The drop in deficient bridges nationally coincided with passage of two federal transportation bills that earmarked $36.5 billion for repairs beginning in 1992 -- more than double the $15.3 billion allocated during the previous decade.
"There's no question that the previous two highway bills played a vital role in beginning to address the problem with obsolete and structurally deficient bridges, but the numbers still remain alarming," said Steve Hansen, a spokesman for House Transportation Committee Chairman Don Young, R-Alaska.
Congress is preparing to renew the legislation, which determines how much federal money flows to states to build and repair roads and bridges. The current six-year bill expires Sept. 30.
While lawmakers debate how much to spend, some state governments, already facing budget shortfalls, are cutting back. Maryland and Kansas have diverted money from transportation projects for other government services, and Wisconsin is considering it.
The Bush administration has proposed increasing highway and transit funding by 13 percent, to $247 billion, over the next six years. Young has said that is not enough and has discussed an increase in the gasoline tax to raise more money. Young wants to spend $375 billion over six years.
The failure to make timely fixes to aging bridges has had deadly consequences nationally. Three people died in November when a century-old bridge across the Chickasawhay River collapsed in Waynesboro, Miss. A replacement bridge was being built nearby at the time.
There can be other costs, as well.
In Warren, Pa., the local hospital has stationed an ambulance crew on the other side of town to avoid a time-consuming 3-mile detour around the Hickory Street Bridge. The 86-year-old concrete arch bridge had deteriorated so thoroughly that it was closed at the end of March. A new $10 million span is more than a year away.
The Associated Press and Star-Bulletin reporter Leila Fujimori contributed to this report.