The Mathews Bridge: historic or an expensive relic?

[jaxlongtimer]

^ If a twin bridge is built, does that cost $1 billion or only if the existing bridge is removed and replaced by one 2+ times bigger?

And, I agree, the money is out there (see U2C).  It's all about priorities.  As to JTA vs. FDOT, both depend quite a bit on Federal dollars.  It could just come down to who can make the best case for directing the Fed's dollars, assuming politicos don't distort the process.  I would imagine, politically speaking, the bridge would be far more popular than a project like U2C so, even in the world of politics, it should come out on top.

The underlying issue is that our visionless "leaders" aren't even talking about it.

[Charles Hunter]

If only that freighter had hit the bridge just a few feet over ... [assuming no one was hurt or killed]

[thelakelander]

^ If a twin bridge is built, does that cost $1 billion or only if the existing bridge is removed and replaced by one 2+ times bigger?

And, I agree, the money is out there (see U2C).  It's all about priorities.  As to JTA vs. FDOT, both depend quite a bit on Federal dollars.  It could just come down to who can make the best case for directing the Fed's dollars, assuming politicos don't distort the process.  I would imagine, politically speaking, the bridge would be far more popular than a project like U2C so, even in the world of politics, it should come out on top.

The underlying issue is that our visionless "leaders" aren't even talking about it.

I always assumed it would be a new span and that there would be efforts to keep the existing structure in place since it's structurally sound and historic in its own right. Either new or a replacement, that span would touch down deeper both into the Eastside and Arlington.

[marcuscnelson]

Applications are now open for the Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant program, with over $5.5 billion in funds available between three funding pools.

Last year, several bridges were funded by one of these pools, the National Infrastructure Project Assistance program, including the Brent Spence Bridge between Ohio and Kentucky, the Calcasieu River Bridge in Louisiana, and the Alligator River Bridge in North Carolina.

Although I wouldn't expect us to be prepared to even apply for this grant (which is due next month) now, it's worth considering the limited opportunity out there for such investment in the long run. It should be worthwhile to plan for potentially taking advantage of this grant in a later fiscal year before the infrastructure bill ends.