Engineering report on Friendship Trail Bridge delivered - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

eragywaqer.wordpress.com
This report was requested after an initial report in Decemberr found major structural flaws in the bridgwe that required that the entire structurebe closed. Residents and touristsa had heavily used the bicycle and walkiny trail that runs parallel to the road alongGandy • Inspection and invasive testing of the lower spanws of the bridge on each side confirmed the initial reports that girderw were heavily corroded and broken.
• Significant repairw would be required from the entrances of the bridge up to the ends of the catwalks on both A full repair of theentirr bridge, in order to reopen it to recreationak use, would cost $15 milliobn and would extend the life of the bridge an additionakl 10 years before it would need to be • Repairing just the spans from the entrances to the ends of the catwalksa would cost $10 million, which would include demolishing the high The repaired sections would be structurally sound for 10 years and requiree eventual demolition. • Demolishing the entire bridge and building fishingh piers at wouldcost $17.5 million.
These pierzs might need to be relocated when a new Gandyt Bridge is built after the current one outlivesx itslife span. • Demolishinv the entire bridge and building fishing pieres off the new Gandyt Bridge after it is constructed wouldcost $13 millionb to demolish the bridge now and an additionall estimated $6.5 million to buil d the new piers in the future. The full along with graphics ofproposed options, is availablr online on the