A Message to Congress

Sellwood Bridge is falling down.  Literally.   The narrow bridge is used constantly used by drivers, bike riders and pedestrians because it connects two densely populated districts of one a city divided by a river (31,000 cars a day).   It's 82 years old and it's concrete is cracking and recycled steel frame rusting.  It is not very wide either, making the bridge a hazardous crossing for people using the 4 foot wide sidewalks or thirteen foot traffic lanes.  It ranks 2 out of 100 points on a federal bridge sufficiency scale, tied with two other bridges in the state.  The Minneapolis bridge that collapsed scored 50.   A significant earthquake would collapse the bridge according to a 1995 engineering study, and it is actually six inches shorter than when it was opened in 1925 due to ground movement.  Sellwood Bridge will cost $237 million to replace because it is beyond repair.  But the county responsible for the structure cannot afford to replace it because it has no money.   There must be hundreds of Sellwood Bridges spanning America after decades of neglect by local authorities with inadequate budgets. So do us all a favor and stop quibbling over a few million here and few million there.  You gave $700 billion to Wall Street which apparently pocketed the chump change.  Keep the aid to the states* in the economic recovery plan you are posturing over.  It is time to get real.

*New Deal programs constructed 46,000 bridges, not to mention planting 3 billion trees.