Busy And Structurally Deficit: Bridge Near Richfield Makes List

RICHFIELD, MN — A highway overpass near Richfield was named among the busiest structurally deficient bridges in Minnesota in a recent report put out by the advocacy group American Road & Transportation Builders Association (ARTBA).

The Interstate 494 bridge over the Minnesota River was built in 1981, and about 46,000 cars pass over it each day. It's also structurally deficient, ARTBA reports.

Other well-traveled, structurally deficient bridges in Hennepin County include the Rockford Road bridge over U.S. 169 and two different bridges on Highway 55 in Minneapolis.

Bridges in the counties of Anoka, Dakota, Ramsey, St. Louis, and Blue Earth also made the list.

Across the nation, about 224,000 bridges need major repair work or should be replaced, according to ARTBA. The cost to fix those bridges is estimated at $260 billion.