Rebuilding Baltimore collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge Experts say it could take anywhere from 18 months to several years, while the price may very well be at the very least $400 million – or greater than double that.
It all is dependent upon aspects which might be still largely unknown. They range from the design of the brand new bridge to how quickly government officials can navigate the bureaucracy of approving permits and awarding contracts.
According to Ben Schafer, an engineering professor at Johns Hopkins University, the project could realistically take five to seven years.
“The lead time for air conditioning for a home renovation is about 16 months right now, right?” Schaefer said. He continued: “So it’s like you’re telling me they’re going to build a whole bridge in two years? I want it to be true, but I guess empirically it doesn’t feel right to me.”
Others are more optimistic concerning the possible timeline: Sameh Badie, an engineering professor at George Washington University, said the project could take as little as 18 months to 2 years.
The Key Bridge collapsed on Tuesday, killing six members of a crew working on the bridge behind the Dali cargo ship plowed into one among its supports. Officials are scrambling to scrub up and rebuild after the accident that shut down town’s busy port and a part of Baltimore’s beltway.
The disaster is somewhat much like the deadly collapse of Florida’s Sunshine Skyway Bridge, which was struck by a freighter in Tampa Bay in 1980. Construction of the brand new bridge took five years, was 19 months late, and was $20 million over budget. It opened in 1987.
But experts say it’s higher to take a look at recent bridge disasters to get a way of how quickly rebuilding can occur.
Jim Tymon, executive director of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, cited the case of the Interstate 35W bridge in Minnesota, which collapsed into the Mississippi River in 2007. The recent bridge was in-built lower than 14 months.
“That’s the best comparison we have for a project like this,” Tymon said. “They have done an excellent job of obtaining the necessary permits to rebuild the building as quickly as possible.”
Tymon expects various government agencies to work together to implement permitting, environmental and other approvals.
“That doesn’t mean it won’t tick all the right boxes – it will,” Tymon said. “It just gets done more efficiently because everyone knows it needs to get done as quickly as possible.”
A looming problem is the source of funding. President Joe Biden has repeatedly said the federal government pays for the brand new bridge, but that continues to be to be seen.
“Hopefully Congress can come together to provide these resources as quickly as possible so that this doesn’t cause delays,” Tymon said.
Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar helped quickly raise money to rebuild the I-35W bridge in her state. However, she said replacing the Baltimore span may very well be more complicated.
She noted that the I-35W bridge, a state highway, is a much busier road, with about 140,000 vehicle crossings per day, in comparison with about 31,000 on the Maryland bridge.
“But where there is a will, there is a way, and you can get the emergency funding,” Klobuchar said. “This happened all over the country when disasters occurred. And the fact that it’s such a big port also makes it worthwhile to make sure everything is sorted out.”
Badie, of George Washington University, said the price could range from $500 million to $1 billion, with the largest variable being the design.
For example, a suspension bridge just like the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco will cost more, while a cable-stayed bridge just like the Skyway Sunshine Bridge in Florida, which supports weight using cables and towers, can be cheaper.
Whatever is built, steel is dear nowadays and there’s a pent-up demand for I-beams, Badie said. In addition, the limited variety of construction firms that may tackle such a project are already busy with other tasks.
“A project like this is accelerated, so everything is going to cost a lot more,” Badie said.
Hota GangaRao, an engineering professor at West Virginia University, said the project could cost as little as $400 million. However, this is just possible if the pier foundations of the old bridge are used; Designers will probably want to locate the brand new supports further away from shipping channels to avoid further collision.
“It will be more steel, more complicated construction and more checks and balances,” GangaRao said. “It all adds up.”
Norma Jean Mattei, an engineering professor emeritus on the University of New Orleans, said replacing the Key Bridge will likely take several years. Although it’s a priority, planning the span, obtaining permits and hiring contractors takes a variety of time. And then you’ve gotten to construct it.
“It’s quite a process to actually get a bridge of this type up and running,” she said.
