The Yankee Doodle Bridge in Norwalk is the one most in need of repairs in the state, according to a new report.
The American Road & Transportation Builders Association”™s report found that of the 4,270 bridges in Connecticut, 308 were classified as structurally deficient, down from 332 bridges so classified last year.
The Yankee Doodle was built in 1957 and crosses the Norwalk River on Interstate 95; it accounts for some 145,000 crossings per day.
A bridge is considered to be structurally deficient if its riding surface, superstructure or substructure are rated at 4 or less on a scale of 1-10. The designation means the bridge is in need of repair or replacement, but not that it is necessarily unsafe.
The report further said that the state has identified needed repairs on 421 bridges at an estimated cost of $1.6 billion, compared with 382 bridges that needed work in 2014.
Connecticut ranks 38th in the nation in the number of structurally deficient bridges; Iowa has the most, with 4,675 of its 24,123 bridges so rated. On a percentage basis, Connecticut comes in 26th with its 7.2 percent; Rhode Island leads that category, with 23.1 percent of its 780 bridges deemed structurally deficient.
Nationwide, of 616,086 bridges, 47,052 ”“ or 7.6 percent ”“ have been classified as structurally deficient.
