Three bridges in Monroe and Pike counties aren't making the PennDOT grade.
We start our bad bridge tour of the Poconos in Monroe County at a bridge on Bridge Street just outside of Stroudsburg. You can see the deterioration, the crumbed concrete on the side.
The bridge, like all bridges in the state of Pennsylvania is ranked by PennDOT, zero to 100.
We asked Leonard Costa of Stroudsburg what he would rank the Bridge Street bridge since he walks across it every day.
"I'd say somewhere in the middle between 40 and 50," When told the bridge rated a 20, Costa said, Really? I didn't know if was that bad." He added that rating doesn't make him feel good.
PennDOT ranks the bridge 21 out of a possible 100, and here's why.
Wear and tear have deteriorated the support beams of the bridge, making it less able to handle heavy loads.
There are no plans to fix or replace the bridge yet but PennDOT said it is inspected at least once a year.
Just a few miles down on Route 611 in Bartonsville another bridge has a similar story. There is a massive hole in the sidewalk.
PennDOT also ranks this bridge 21, for deteriorated beams, however it is set to be replaced in 2012.
So what is this rating system?
PennDOT said it's not about safety, it's about priority. What bridges need to be fixed first. It's all based on deterioration, age and bridge traffic.
Which brings us to one of our worst bridges in the Poconos.
We found it in Pike County on Route 402 over Interstate 84. It's ranked 16 out of 100.
It's where we met up with PennDOT bridge engineer Harold Hill.
"Right at the end of the beam caused it to be a 16 because the strands were exposed there was deterioration on the concrete," Hill explained.
The bridge is currently undergoing minor repairs, around $100,000 of work, which should bump up its ranking in the next few weeks.
However Hill said the bridge still could be replaced by 2012.
It's all apart of a statewide bridge initiative to fix or replace 1,145 bridges statewide in the next three years.
We start our bad bridge tour of the Poconos in Monroe County at a bridge on Bridge Street just outside of Stroudsburg. You can see the deterioration, the crumbed concrete on the side.
The bridge, like all bridges in the state of Pennsylvania is ranked by PennDOT, zero to 100.
We asked Leonard Costa of Stroudsburg what he would rank the Bridge Street bridge since he walks across it every day.
"I'd say somewhere in the middle between 40 and 50," When told the bridge rated a 20, Costa said, Really? I didn't know if was that bad." He added that rating doesn't make him feel good.
PennDOT ranks the bridge 21 out of a possible 100, and here's why.
Wear and tear have deteriorated the support beams of the bridge, making it less able to handle heavy loads.
There are no plans to fix or replace the bridge yet but PennDOT said it is inspected at least once a year.
Just a few miles down on Route 611 in Bartonsville another bridge has a similar story. There is a massive hole in the sidewalk.
PennDOT also ranks this bridge 21, for deteriorated beams, however it is set to be replaced in 2012.
So what is this rating system?
PennDOT said it's not about safety, it's about priority. What bridges need to be fixed first. It's all based on deterioration, age and bridge traffic.
Which brings us to one of our worst bridges in the Poconos.
We found it in Pike County on Route 402 over Interstate 84. It's ranked 16 out of 100.
It's where we met up with PennDOT bridge engineer Harold Hill.
"Right at the end of the beam caused it to be a 16 because the strands were exposed there was deterioration on the concrete," Hill explained.
The bridge is currently undergoing minor repairs, around $100,000 of work, which should bump up its ranking in the next few weeks.
However Hill said the bridge still could be replaced by 2012.
It's all apart of a statewide bridge initiative to fix or replace 1,145 bridges statewide in the next three years.
