Nearly 650 Virginia bridges are ‘structurally deficient’

By Keya Vakil

July 26, 2019

Over six hundred of Virginia’s 13,931 bridges are structurally deficient, according to a report from the American Road Transportation Builders Association.

Virginia has seen a steep reduction in the number of structurally-deficient bridges since 2014, when 1,033 bridges were classified as deficient. But despite that progress, there are still more than 3.4 million daily crossings across bridges that are in need of significant repairs, according to the report.

The issue is particularly glaring in Pittsylvania County. The Danville Register & Bee found that 18 of the county’s 212 bridges (8.5%) are structurally deficient. The paper also reports that Paula Jones, communications manager for the Virginia Department of Transportation, said that designation “doesn’t mean that it’s not safe.”

What it does mean is that at least one part of the bridge’s structure, such as the deck or the culverts, are in need of repair. VDOT told the Register & Bee that the agency inspects every bridge at least once every two years.

Keya Vakil

Keya Vakil is the deputy political editor at COURIER. He previously worked as a researcher in the film industry and dabbled in the political world.

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