(The Associated Press distributed the following article on December 21.)
CLEVELAND — Ohio has nearly 3,000 bridges in need of major repairs, and those spans that are the responsibility of railroads are less likely to be maintained properly, a report said Sunday.
The Plain Dealer said the findings emerged in its analysis of annual inspection records for the 30,000 Ohio bridges at least 20 feet long.
Those identified as being maintained by the railroads are much more likely to be in bad shape than those maintained by local, county or state governments, the analysis showed.
Twenty-four percent of railroad bridges are rated deficient, compared with 10 percent of all other bridges in the state.
The average age for railroad bridges is 69 years, compared with 36 for all other bridges in the state.
Statewide, the number of deficient bridges has fallen by about one-third over the last 10 years, in part because of the investment of about $200 million a year in state and federal money.
“Once the physical condition of a bridge falls substandard, then we do work on it,” said Tim Keller, chief bridge engineer for the Ohio Department of Transportation.
But the highway department is not in charge of bridges the railroads are responsible for maintaining.
ODOT reviews inspection reports and keeps in contact with the railroads overseeing bridges, Keller said. “That is the limit of what we can do with those.”
CSX spokesman David Hall said even if the railroads were once responsible for some of the bridges in question, times have changed.
In many cases, vehicle demands on bridges have changed so much since the early 1900s that “you’re talking about (a need) for a new bridge and a new agreement,” Hall said.
Hall said CSX has invested heavily to ensure bridge safety.
CSX plans to spend $46 million on infrastructure in Ohio this year, though the amount specifically for bridges was unavailable.
In 1993, after a year of negotiations, Conrail agreed with the city of Cleveland to fix 19 bridges that inspectors deemed unsafe because of crumbling concrete and deteriorating steel and to paint 38 bridges within three years.
All but two bridges were fixed, and all but one were painted, the city reported.
Cleveland is working on an inventory of conditions for railroad bridges and crossings, as well as litter problems along tracks. The city will rate the problems and compare the list with the railroad repair schedules.
“The railroads have shown an interest in improving their relationship with municipalities they exist in,” said Cleveland Public Service Director Mark Ricchiuto.
“This process will tell us whether that is true.”