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Joe Biden’s Bridge to Nowhere
By spokesman | October 2, 2008
Sarah Palin and the controversy over the Alaska Bridge to Nowhere has been getting significant attention in the media. However, Joe Biden also has a bridge to nowhere in his State or more precisely, a bridge where the construction is going nowhere. The Delaware Route 1 Bridge at the Indian River Inlet needs to be replaced due to deepening of the inlet that has resulting in a weakening of the supports for the current bridge. Funding for the new bridge was partially financed with earmarks from Congress (see OMB site with details on earmark from 2005 and earmark from 2009) The Delaware bridge has been subject to escalating costs, construction delays, a major rebuilding of the first phase and the need for 3 redesigns of the bridge. The above picture is an artist’s rendition of the third and current design.
As a bicyclist, I was initially excited about the project. The new bridge will have a bicycle lane and be less likely to collapse. The current bridge has no bike lane, just a 15 inch shoulder with expansion joints and sewer grates. However the reason for replacing the bridge is due to the weakening of the supports. While the current bridge is still deemed safe; despite earlier reports that it would not last this long; Delaware has installed sensors to closely monitor the bridge. The replacement bridge is still several years from completion. The race is on.
Sequence of events for the new Indian River Inlet Bridge
Oct 2004 - Groundbreaking for new bridge (see Del DOT press release)
May 2005 - Cost of original design increases by $58 million. The total cost for the project, which will create the longest arched span in the world, is estimated at $218 million. The price tag was $160 million when ground was broken in October. (see article at delawareonline).
Spring 2005 - Construction begins on approach ramps for the new bridge
Fall 2005 - Only 1 company remains in the bidding on the bridge project at a cost of $200 million - more than 80% higher than the original $125 estimate. (see article from The News Journal - Wilmington DE). The bid opening is canceled and the State looks at alternatives. Based on some changes in the bridge design, Delaware identifies a short list of 3 bidders.
2006- The new approach ramps are completed and given a period of time to settle before proceeding to the next phase - installment of roadway and the bridge span. However the approach ramps continue to settle and shift. A new bridge design is needed with bridge supports located on land. The approach ramps, built at a cost of over $20 million) need to be partially removed.
May 2007 - The bridge is delayed again due to procurement problems All bids are set aside.
Oct 2007 - Delaware DOT announce a new plan with a modified bridge design and a new procurement process (see Del DOT document on new plan)
April 2008 - Work begins on removal of approach ramps (see article in Cape Gazette Newspaper)
August 2008 - Delaware DOT awards contract for bridge construction (see article). The bridge will cost $150 million and will be less elborate than the original designs.
Under the current schedule, the bridge is expected to open to traffic by December 2011, nearly eight years after the groundbreaking. It took less time to realize President Kennedy’s goal of reaching the moon than it will take to build the new Indian River Inlet Bridge.
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October 2nd, 2008 at 2:10 am
Thanks for the info. It seems there’s little unfinished bridges to nowhere dotting the entire country. I think it takes a special person to give all that money back, and Sarah Palin seems to be that kind of a gal.
October 2nd, 2008 at 3:17 am
[…] However, Joe Biden also has a bridge to nowhere in his State or more precisely, a bridge where the construction is going nowhere. The Delaware Route 1 Bridge at the Indian River Inlet needs to be replaced due to deepening of the inlet …[Continue Reading] […]
October 2nd, 2008 at 12:04 pm
This bridge is NOT a bridge to nowhere. This bridge is critical to traffic going from south coastal Delaware as well as Ocean City, Maryland to all points north. The Alaskan bridge would have replaced a ferry service and benefited only a small community that lived on an island. Thousands of residents and tourists use the Indian River Inlet Bridge every year and that is the difference. Yes its still both earmarks, but that’s the game congress has played and still plays.
November 6th, 2008 at 4:54 pm
Late in coming, but there’s been much misinformation as a result of the horrible CNN story trying to compare the Alaska Bridge to Delaware’s Bridge. Later, I’ll list the misinformation reported by CNN’s Drew Griffin, but first it’s important to note that as I write this the construction company that signed the contract to build the new Indian River Inlet Bridge is on site, and in the next couple weeks will be doing major site preparations. True, we have had setbacks to get to this point, but for the first time a contractor is building this bridge. By early next year the activity at the site will be quite a site to see. Go to www.deldot.gov for the latest information, and stay tuned for much more as the construction team gets mobilized.
Now, on to the CNN report….. The Delaware Department of Transportation would like to make the following comments to the CNN story:
The story by Drew Griffin re US Sen. Biden’s support for a new bridge over the Indian River Inlet in Delaware cleverly left out key facts, to support the story’s assertion that earmarks for this bridge are similar to Alaska’s Bridge to Nowhere. Here are the points in the story that need elaboration/correction:
CNN: “after tourists are gone it can seem like a bridge between two nowheres”
DelDOT Fact: In the summer months, approximately 24,000 vehicles a day use this bridge. Non summer months, 14,000 to 15,000. It is the economic , freight and emergency link for lower Delaware to northern Delaware, and for southern states to state’s beyond Delaware such as Pennsylvania, New York etc.
CNN: Sunlight Foundation said the bridge is not a priority project.
DelDOT Fact: First, how would they know? The Sunlight Foundation never called us to check, and didn’t return my phone call when I questioned them about their comment in the story. The reporter, Mr. Griffin was told it was a priority, but didn’t care much about facts. The fact is it is a structurally deficient bridge and is scored among the state’s 5 most deficient. It is the state’s #1 bridge priority, and we’ve stated this for years. Of course the bridge is safe… now… but it is structurally deficient and needs to be replaced. We have 40 such structurally deficient bridges in Delaware, and all are scheduled for repairs/replacement. Only 1 is actually closed at this point.
CNN: 35 minutes detour without the bridge in place.
DelDOT Fact: The kind of comment that could only be made by someone who doesn’t live here. Without the bridge, it’s a 26 mile detour through twisting, winding narrow roads. I am not sure who could drive this detour in 35 minutes… I’d like to meet them.
CNN: “some erosion” is the comment made by Mr. Griffin as the problem with the current bridge. A grand oversimplification. The problem is called scour, and it is jeopardizing the piers in the water. Simply, the dirt around the piers is scouring away, leaving the piers exposed and vulnerable to collapse. There are scour holes as deep as 100 feet in areas near the piers. As it is now, large rocks, rip rap, were placed around each of the piers to prevent the scour from jeopardizing the piers. This is a temporary fix. The new bridge will not have piers in the water. If the Minnessota bridge collapse showed us anything, the time to replace a bridge is not when it collapses.
CNN should have taken more care in reporting the facts of this story. Instead, Mr. Griffin used excellent editing and selective facts to make a connection that is simply inaccurate and wrong.