[PRCo] Re: Weak Bridges

[Herb Brannon]

Even a 40 foot NABI lowfloor city bus, these days, weighs 40,550 empty !
Fred Schneider <fwschneider at comcast.net> wrote:  I knew I could kick around a little dust.... I remember adding up 
trailer weights at Norwalk Truck Lines around 36,000 lbs. when I 
worked for them in 1963. Loads around 60,000 are probably more or 
less normal today with 53-foot semi trailers.



On Aug 15, 2007, at 10:04 PM, John Swindler wrote:

>
>
> That I-35 bridge was under reconstruction, so had construction 
> equipment
> sitting in some of the lanes, and the stopped traffic concentrated 
> vehicle
> weights on the spans. With moving traffic, there is empty space 
> between
> vehicles.
>
> So Rankin and Donora bridges should not be a concern if traffic is 
> light and
> moving. Our automobiles are not the problem.
>
> PennDOT issued a news release to calm the masses that if bridge is 
> open, it
> is safe. Wasn't the I-35 bridge open, and wasn't the I-95 bridge 
> in Conn.
> open some 20 years ago?
>
> But then again, infrastructure repair doesn't generate votes. And 
> what was
> the max. axle load 30/40/50 years ago when these bridges were 
> designed and
> what is it today?
>
> John
>
>
>> From: Fred Schneider 
>> Reply-To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
>> To: pittsburgh-railways at dementia.org
>> Subject: [PRCo] Weak Bridges
>> Date: Wed, 15 Aug 2007 19:22:47 -0400
>>
>> On the subject of weak bridges, Pennsylvania's politicians finally
>> bit the bullet and today released a list of structurally deficient
>> bridges. Except for a couple in Carbon County and one over the
>> Lehigh River at West Catasauqua, most are either in Erie County (both
>> eastbound and westbound spans on I-95 at Northeast PA), or Allegheny,
>> or Beaver or Washington counties. The Rankin Bridge, that replaced
>> the one that fell under the over loaded work car in 1937, is one of
>> those on today's list of spans you really don't want to cross.
>> Another (get this one Jerry) is the Donora to Monessen span.
>>
>>
>
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