{"id":5150,"date":"2016-07-20T15:31:37","date_gmt":"2016-07-20T20:31:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/?p=5150"},"modified":"2016-07-20T15:32:56","modified_gmt":"2016-07-20T20:32:56","slug":"stressed-out","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2016\/07\/20\/stressed-out\/","title":{"rendered":"STRESSED OUT"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Ancient I-10 Bridge Is\u00a0<\/b>Structurally Deficient, And\u00a0<\/b>Two Years Of Work On The\u00a0<\/b>I-210 Bridge Begins Soon.<\/b><\/p>\n

Something Doesn\u2019t\u00a0<\/b>Add Up Here.<\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Story By Kristian Bland<\/p>\n

Photos By Jason Carroll \/ monsoursphotography.net<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

On a scale of 0-10, the World War II Memorial Bridge (what most people call the I-10 Bridge) has a sufficiency rating of less than 1.<\/p>\n

Rated at 0.66 out of 10, the bridge is \u201cbasically intolerable,\u201d with the deck, superstructure, and substructure all listed as being in serious condition. The current status of the bridge is \u201cstructurally deficient.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, the Dept. of Transportation and Development says everything\u2019s fine. In an interview with KPLC-TV, the DOTD district administrator, Todd Landry, said, \u201cThe bridge is not going to fall down; if it were dangerous, we would close the bridge.\u201d\"i103\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Which is probably why, according to KPLC-TV, building a new I-10 Bridge is just a \u201cdream\u201d that isn\u2019t \u201crealistic\u201d enough to warrant doing anything any time soon.<\/p>\n

Instead, the DOTD is going to spruce up the I-210 Bridge first … just because.<\/p>\n

Last year, the DOTD announced plans for a proposed I-210 Bridge rehabilitation project that will involve replacing the main span bridge deck, installing modern railings and roadway lighting and adding a safety inspection walkway under the bridge. The rehabilitation project was scheduled to begin later this summer before it was pushed back to the fall.<\/p>\n

It will take at least two years to complete, and is expected to cost $20-30 million, give or take a few million.<\/p>\n

That all sounds pretty great for the I-210 Bridge, which is officially known as the Israel LaFleur Bridge for people who pay attention to that sort of thing. I\u2019m just glad they\u2019re doing something about it, because I\u2019m sure this bridge is in a lot worse shape than the I-10 Bridge. I mean, why else would they be fixing it first?<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s take a quick glance at the NBI\u2019s ratings for the I-210 Bridge, just to put your mind at ease.<\/p>\n

The deck is in satisfactory condition.<\/p>\n

The superstructure is in satisfactory condition.<\/p>\n

The substructure is in good condition.<\/p>\n

The bridge railings meet currently acceptable standards.\"i2101\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The transitions meet currently acceptable standards.<\/p>\n

The approach guardrail meets currently acceptable standards.<\/p>\n

Hey. Wait a minute. It sounds like the I-210 Bridge is actually in pretty good shape. What gives?<\/p>\n

Maybe its sufficiency rating is super low, even though the DOTD says that rating \u201c\u2026really has nothing to do with the safety of the bridge.\u201d<\/p>\n

The I-210 Bridge has a sufficiency rating of 73.9 percent, or 7.39 out of 10.<\/p>\n

Wait. What? The I-210 Bridge is pretty much the exact opposite of the I-10 Bridge in every way. It has a good rating, and all of its elements are satisfactory. If its sufficiency rating was its score on a social studies test, it would pass easily. Meanwhile, the I-10 Bridge would be repeating 4th grade for the umpteenth time because it\u2019s been busy eating paste and licking its shoes instead of paying attention in class.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s recap, just so we\u2019re clear. We have a more heavily used bridge with a sufficiency rating of .66 percent, but it\u2019s not getting fixed until after the one that carries less traffic and has a much better rating of 73.9 percent is fixed.<\/p>\n

Something doesn\u2019t add up here.<\/p>\n

The I-10 Bridge is part of the main traffic artery for the Gulf Coast. More than 72,000 vehicles cross it every day.<\/p>\n

In contrast, the 210 Loop only carries 42,000 vehicles each day.<\/p>\n

The I-10 Bridge has almost double the traffic, and is in much, much worse shape than the I-210 Bridge, but we\u2019re fixing the good one first?<\/p>\n

This is Bizarro World logic.\"i102\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Maybe it\u2019s because I\u2019m new here and don\u2019t understand how things work. But it seems to me that you\u2019d want to fix the bridge in worse condition before you fix the better one \u2014 especially when the better one is actually in pretty decent condition. Sure, it could use some lights and maybe a shoulder. But so could the I-10 Bridge.<\/p>\n

Maybe the powers that be are worried that unless they enhance it now, the I-210 Bridge won\u2019t be able to handle the increased traffic diverted from Interstate 10 whenever the DOTD finally gets around to working on that bridge, which I guess kind of makes sense. After all, if you\u2019re going to put more stress on the bridge, then getting it ready to handle the increased traffic probably isn\u2019t a bad idea.<\/p>\n

Then again, won\u2019t traffic on 210 get diverted to I-10 while the I-210 Bridge is being worked on? If the I-210 Bridge \u2014 which in in satisfactory condition and has a 73.9 percent sufficiency rating \u2014 needs to be fixed up before it can handle I-10\u2019s traffic, then how will the I-10 Bridge possibly be able to handle the stress of taking on 210\u2019s?<\/p>\n

Metaphors involving straw and the backs of camels come to mind \u2026<\/p>\n

The last time the I-10 Bridge received any major work was in 2011, when it was part of a $5.7 million repair project that ended in 2012. Just one year later, the bridge\u2019s sufficiency rating was only 9.9 percent. It\u2019s losing roughly 1 percent of its already poor rating per year. Can we really afford to spend $20-30 million and at least two years waiting on a perfectly serviceable bridge to be upgraded before the ailing I-10 Bridge gets some attention? At its current rate of decline, it might not even still be here by then.<\/p>\n

The In For 10 campaign to rebuild the I-10 Bridge is up to more than 1,100 signatures now. Maybe you should swing by and give it a click, because it\u2019s looking more and more like this grassroots effort is the only thing that might be able to make something good happen.<\/p>\n

Before something bad happens.<\/p>\n

Of course, maybe the decision to fix up the I-210 Bridge first has less to do with public safety and more to do with something I\u2019ve written about before, which seems to be a theme in Lake Charles: Development dollars pour into the South side of town, while the north end is left to make do with what it has.<\/p>\n

I wonder why that is?<\/p>\n

Granted, this might not be the case, but it certainly seems like it. I don\u2019t think you could paint a clearer picture of this area\u2019s priorities than choosing to enhance an entirely acceptable bridge on one side of town while ignoring and waving away the very real problems of an increasingly deficient bridge on the other.<\/p>\n

In a perfect world, we\u2019d have two great bridges: one for the interstate, and one for the loop. But I guess we don\u2019t live in a perfect world.<\/p>\n

Or even a fair one.<\/p>\n

To sign the petition to fast track a new I-10 bridge, visit infor10.org.<\/i><\/p>\n

Kristian Bland is the managing editor at Townsquare Media.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

.<\/i><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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Something Doesn\u2019t\u00a0Add Up Here.   Story By Kristian Bland Photos By Jason Carroll \/ monsoursphotography.net   On a scale of 0-10, the World War II Memorial Bridge (what most people call the I-10 Bridge) has a sufficiency rating of less [&hellip<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":44,"featured_media":5151,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[4,1171,1172,1174,1173,1175],"yoast_head":"\nSTRESSED OUT - BestOfSwla<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bestofswla.com\/2016\/07\/20\/stressed-out\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"STRESSED OUT - BestOfSwla\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Ancient I-10 Bridge Is\u00a0Structurally Deficient, And\u00a0Two Years Of Work On The\u00a0I-210 Bridge Begins Soon. 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