Busy And Structurally Deficient: 2 Minneapolis Bridges Make List

MINNEAPOLIS — Two highway overpasses in Minneapolis were 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 Minnesota 55 bridge over Cedar Avenue, and the Minnesota 55 bridge over Franklin Avenue, both have about 39,000 daily crossings.

Both were built in 1967, and both are now structurally deficient, according to the ARTBA report.

Other well-traveled, structurally deficient bridges in Hennepin County include the Interstate 494 overpass over the Minnesota River and the County Road 9 (Rockford Road) overpass over U.S. 169.

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.