Mt. Hope Bridge true condition and safety. Release the 2024 Inspection Report – Nick Landekic

by Nick Landekic, contributing writer

Photo, https://www.ritba.org/history

According to the National Society of Professional Engineers, Rhode Island has the worst bridges in the country. We rank last among the states with 22.3% of our bridges – nearly one out of every four – being structurally deficient.

Our roads are no better. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Rhode Island also has the worst road conditions of any state, with nearly 50% – half – rated in poor condition.

The failure of the Washington Bridge has been extensively reported. It seems there are also reasons to question the condition of the Mt. Hope Bridge. Rhode Island authorities have apparently been aware of these issues for a number of years and an inspection of the bridge was done last November – the results of which the Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority has not yet released despite being completed five months ago.

The Mt. Hope Bridge was completed in 1929. It is a stunningly beautiful bridge about a mile long, spanning Mt. Hope Bay, 135 feet above the water, connecting Bristol and Portsmouth. It is one of only three connections from the mainland to Newport and Aquidneck Island, and is the sole connection from the East Bay. It is used by about 7 million vehicles a year.

Mt. Hope is a suspension bridge, like the Brooklyn and Golden Gate bridges, meaning the roadway (deck) and the weight of any vehicles are supported by cables connected to the two main towers.

https://www.wsdot.wa.gov/TNBHistory/suspension-bridges.htm

https://www.portsmouthri.gov/AgendaCenter/ViewFile/Item/8870?fileID=11897

Most of the load is carried by the two large main suspension cables. In the Mt. Hope Bridge, these are each made of 2,450 individual steel wires bundled in 7 strands of 350 wires each. 

The problem is the nearly 100 year old wires in the suspension cables that support the roadway have been rusting and breaking because of water and moisture getting inside the cables, and have lost strength as a result.

Stages of wire rusting and breaking

A 2021 report by the RI Turnpike and Bridge Authority summarized inspections from 1960-2000 that found 744 broken wires out of a total of 2,450 – a staggering 30%.

The report mentions a later 2015 inspection but does not give details. Given all the mistakes with the state’s handling of the Washington Bridge, what confidence can we have on the true condition of the Mt. Hope Bridge? 

Photo of main suspension cable wire breaks on the Mt. Hope Bridge

The 2021 RIBTA report describes a “load safety factor” of 2.15 as the minimum for safe use. A factor of 2.62 was estimated in 2015. However, the report also states “it is likely this estimate is optimistic and the true safety factor at that time was lower.” Was this calculated based on the number of broken wires reported in 2000? Certainly, more have broken in the 25 years since then. How many?

The RIBTA report suggested the safety factor could fall below 2.15 by 2028. There are a number of important questions, including, what is the current state of wire breakage in the suspension cables? What is the true current safety factor? How many wires are rusted and close to breaking, meaning, they are not effectively carrying a load? The more wires that break, the greater the load put on the remaining wires. Could this result in a cascade effect, reaching a tipping point where the remaining wires can no longer safely carry the load and catastrophically fail?

There may also be questions regarding the effectiveness of repairs done on some wires mentioned in the RIBTA report. Once a wire breaks the load it was carrying is immediately distributed to the remaining intact wires. Is it possible to functionally repair a broken wire when the tension will have been released by its breaking? Can a repaired broken wire be feasibly re-tensioned to carry a working load? Or are repairs more cosmetic? If the breakage was due to rusting as stated in the report, can rusted steel be expected to have the same ductility and strength of unrusted metal? Can the reduced number of remaining intact wires carry the extra load being placed on them as a result of broken wires?

The bridge is currently undergoing a dehumidification project to slow the rate of rusting. Will this be enough, or is it too little, too late? Dehumidifying the suspension cables is a good idea that is often done to extend the life of a bridge.

In the case of the Mt. Hope Bridge, is it closing the barn door 30 years after the horse has left? Is the unpleasant reality that replacement of the suspension cables, or the entire bridge, is what is really needed?

RIDOT Director Peter Alviti functionally had no experience with bridges prior to assuming the post. Reports have surfaced suggesting engineers were dismissed and replaced with project managers whose prior experiences ranged from working for a furniture store, another worked as a manager at a zoo, and another was a restaurant and interior designer. Many do not have engineering, construction, or technical degrees, and in some cases have degrees in political philosophy, interior design, and theater. Can we have confidence in their work and representations?

Rhode Island was warned about problems with the Washington Bridge several years before the emergency closure due to imminent structural failure in December 2023. Governor McKee acknowledged knowing of the problems back in 2018. Yet nothing was proactively done until the emergency closure. Is a similar process happening with the Mt. Hope Bridge? What are we not being told about its condition?

The cost to replace the main suspension cables could be several hundred million dollars, and upwards of a billion dollars to replace the entire bridge – which might be needed if the steel understructure supporting the roadway is extensively rusted.

Clearly Rhode Island does not have this kind of money and it is beyond the reach of the state to do on its own. To expect the Trump administration to pay the costs would be untethered from reality, given the extensive budget cuts and reductions in state support already underway. It’s understandable why no Rhode Island politician would want to go on record asking for either a major tax increase to pay for bridge repairs, or to advocate for closing the bridge for safety reasons.

However, our lives are more important than money and politics.

Tens of thousands of people use the Mt. Hope Bridge every day. We must know its true condition and safety. There are important questions and reasons for concern. RITBA must immediately release the results of the bridge inspection. If there are any questions or uncertainties from the RITBA report then our state legislators should quickly organize a commission to conduct a qualified, independent assessment of the Mt. Hope Bridge.

Given the questions regarding local contractors previously used by RIDOT this inspection should be done by a group outside the local area, perhaps from New York.

We are all affected by this. The closure of the Mt. Hope Bridge would be devastating to the economy and quality of life of many in Rhode Island, and a failure of a suspension cable would be a catastrophe that could cost many lives. Call RITBA, your state representatives and the Governor and let them know how you feel and demand the release of the RITBA inspection report.

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Nick Landekic of Bristol is a retired C.E.O. and biotechnology entrepreneur who has spent more than 35 years working in the pharmaceutical industry.