NDOT Release
The Nevada Department of Transportation’s dedicated bridge inspection and rehabilitation program has helped Nevada bridges to be named the nation’s best for the second consecutive year.
The American Road and Transportation Builders Association’s recently-released analysis of 2015 U.S. Department of Transportation bridge inventory data shows only 1.8 percent of Nevada’s approximately 1,900 public bridges being structurally deficient.
Compared to the 9.6 percent national average, it is the nation’s best ranking, and the same top ranking that the state received in 2014. The term structurally deficient bridge is used to describe bridges in need of rehabilitation or potential replacement. Structurally deficient bridges are not necessarily unsafe or dangerous. Rather, these bridges become a priority for corrective measures, and may be posted to restrict the weight of vehicles using them.
NDOT inspects all bridges in the state of Nevada, including city and county-maintained structures. All bridge structures are inspected every two years, while bridges with more extensive deterioration are inspected more often.
“Keeping everyone safe and connected on Nevada’s roads is our primary focus,” NDOT Director Rudy Malfabon said. “We utilize federal and state transportation funding to make important enhancements to keep Nevada bridges the nation’s best, and, most importantly, to keep Nevada motorists safe on our bridges.”
The Nevada Department of Transportation dedicated approximately $33 million in fiscal years 2013 and 2014 on bridge preservation. Nearly 340 of Nevada’s state-owned bridges are more than 50 years of age, an age when rehabilitation is often necessary to keep the structure to current standards.
