Local Bridge Inspections

The repercussions of the Minneapolis bridge collapse are starting to make their way to the Hoosier state. Governer Mitch Daniels is asking for inspections of several Indiana bridges. All steel truss bridges in the state will undergo inspections beginning next week. Among them is the more than 70 year old New Harmony bridge. It took only five months back in 1928 to design and begin construction on the bridge that connects New Harmony to Carmi, illinois. With all the traffic its seen in 77 years safety concerns for this bridge started long before the Minneapolis accident. Drivers making the commute across the new harmony bridge dont often think about the history their passing through. But these days they do think about the safety. "Ive been watching all day long on the TV about the bridge in Minneapolis," says driver Karen Thompson. Its more than twice the age of the bridge that collapsed over the Missississippi River killing at least five, but Vice President of the Bridge Commission Dave Rice says its not a likely scenerio here. "It was very well solidly built and well designed. I think it passes the test." At one point a million vehicles per year crossed the bridge. Thats now down to 330 thousand thanks to the construction of the Mount Vernon bridge and State Route 69. But bridge safety concerns were still raised in 2003. "I was just reading the bridge studies that have been done and all of them say they dont find any fractures, cracks" One of the only concerns is the concerete on the bridge. The approaches are a little rough and often need patching, but once you reach the actually bridge is smooth and rarely needs attention. The other concern is the width of the bridge. Its only about 20 feet wide because it was built for buggies not cars.. "A truck or something could collide with the bridge." Luckily State Route 69 took rerouted trucks away from the narrow lanes. While inspections will continue Rice says drivers should continue feeling as safe as they did crossing the New Harmony Bridge almost 80 years ago.