New Port Mann Bridge problems

[badbadboy]

It will be interesting to see how these recent set of accidents are dealt with by the bridge construction company. First we had over a hundred vehicles damaged by falling ice from the supporting cables and today we had a 20 car pile up because of black ice built up at the western end of the span. Heated support cables? Heated Bridge Deck? Vibration system to keep ice from forming?

It is not like this was the first bridge this consortium has built and they have experience with our type of weather from the new bridge built in Tacoma WA. Further review indicates that they had similar problems with the bridge in Tacoma too.

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2012/12/20/port-mann-bridge-ice-snow-damage-ti-corp_n_2339277.html

A $3.3B bridge better come with a damn good warranty and action plan to make things right.

 

[blazejowski]

Further review indicates that they had similar problems with the bridge in Tacoma too.

Hopefully they won't have the same issues... yikes...

 

[canuck33660]

Potential for black ice is always high for bridges ... any bridge regardless of the design.

Most bridges are over water and therefore high presence of water in the air to form black ice when it condences on the road surface.

And the road surface will tend to be cooler than normal pavement over land. This is due to the fact cold air cirulates under the bridge surface.

So it should come as no surprise to the highway maintenance contractor (Mainroad Contracting Ltd) that there is a very high potential for black ice.

The only preventative measure they took was to lay down a brine solution 24 hrs prior to this morning.

As for the idea of having a heated road surface. I am old enough to remember that the "new" Knight Street bridge had that and it only operated for a few years before they permanently shut it down.

Global TV interviewed the works yard manager for the City of Vancouver and he stated that due to the low temperatures salt had been laid down all night and in the early morning on all bridges. There were no incidences of black ice on Vancouver bridges.

So who is the fuck'n moron in charge at Mainroad Contracting. Why didn't they laid down salt like the City of Vancouver.

This isn't the first instance where Mainroad fuck up. During the last snow fall no plowing or salting was done at all.

They must have paid the Liberals a ton of bribe money for them to be able to keep their contract.

I think all of the motorists who use Highway 1 should file a class action suit against Mainroad. At a minimum they will need to spend a ton of money on lawyers and hopefully it will put them out of business.

This mornings problem had NOTHING to do with the bridge design and everything to do with the maintenance contractor.

I have no idea why the news people are not jumping all over their screwup.

As for having a heated road surface. I am old enough to remember that the Knight Street bridge came with a heated road surface to prevent ice and it only operated for a few years before it was permanently shut off.

 

[mercyshooter]

We need tunnels like Messey! Damn! :doh: