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How safe are Pennsylvania bridges? PennDOT spokesperson weighs in

How safe are the bridges you drive on every day? People across the state are asking questions after Friday's collapse in Pittsburgh.

YORK COUNTY, Pa. — Friday morning's bridge collapse in Pittsburgh is raising the red flag in other parts of the state. How safe are bridges across the commonwealth? PennDOT says, "Don't worry."

The bridge in Pittsburgh was inspected in September, and it was designated to be in poor condition. Several vehicles, including a bus, were on it when it fell apart Friday morning. These vehicles were the unlucky ones. 

Ten people were hurt. Most were first responders, but two people who were in one of the vehicles were released from a hospital Sunday.

Pennsylvania is ranked second in the country when it comes to bridges in bad shape, just behind Iowa.

David Thompson, the PennDOT spokesman for south-central Pennsylvania, admits the region has its share of bad bridges, but he adds drivers shouldn't worry.

He said, "We're required to inspect bridges every two years, but if the bridge is in poor condition, we may inspect it yearly."

The bad bridges get a closer look.

"If there's something of concern that we want to monitor or keep an eye on, we'll inspect it more often," added Thompson.

Only about 160 bridges in his district are classified as poor.

President Biden visited the collapsed bridge Friday and promised federal help to fix this bridge and others like it across the country.

It is part of his trillion-dollar infrastructure improvement bill.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is looking for the cause of the Pittsburgh collapse.

A preliminary report could come out next week.

The final report could take as long as 18 months.

A Pittsburgh city councilman says replacing the bridge could take two years and cost $10 million.

Check out some winter-weather safety tips from the Stormtracker 16 team.

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