A bridge in Baltimore, an important port on the East Coast of the United States, was hit by a container ship in the early hours of the 26th. The US Department of Transportation launched an investigation on the 27th. At the same time, American public opinion has also begun to focus on why the tragedy of this old bridge, which has always shouldered a heavy burden, occurred. Many experts remind that many infrastructure in the United States is aging, and many "old bridges" are difficult to adapt to modern shipping needs, posing similar safety hazards.
However, this is not the first time a bridge collapse has occurred in the United States. Analysis suggests that the collapse of the Baltimore Bridge this time serves as a warning to the United States. Due to a lack of funding, the risk of accidents in infrastructure, including bridges, in the United States may become a concern.
There have been multiple bridge collapses in the United States, and the recent bridge collapse in Baltimore has reminded American experts of the deadly bridge collapses that have occurred in the past few decades. A 2018 report by the World Water Transport Infrastructure Association showed that from 1960 to 2015, there were 35 major bridge collapses and 342 deaths worldwide due to ship or barge collisions, with 18 accidents occurring in the United States. In 1980, the Sunshine Viaduct in Florida, USA was hit by a cargo ship and collapsed, resulting in the death of 35 people. In 1993, due to heavy fog, a tugboat collided with the Grand Cano Lake railway bridge in Alabama, USA, causing the train's tracks to deviate. A few minutes later, an American railway passenger train derailed while passing by, causing 47 deaths. In 2001, a tugboat and several barges loaded with coil steel and phosphate collided with the longest cross sea bridge in Texas, USA near Isabelle Port, causing a section of the bridge arch to collapse and resulting in 8 deaths. In 2007, the Interstate 35 bridge over the Mississippi River near Minneapolis collapsed under heavy traffic during peak hours, resulting in 13 deaths. These disasters seem to be caused by structural issues with the bridge.
Experts say that with accidents such as train derailments, highway and bridge collapses happening throughout the United States, this is a worrying trend. According to National Geographic, there are 617000 bridges in the United States, including not only bridges spanning large rivers, but also highway overpasses and small bridges spanning streams. "It is worrying that nearly one tenth of the bridges have been severely damaged," said Amran Mukherjee, Director of Infrastructure Sustainability at WAP Sustainable Development Consulting. "It is now time to consider bridge issues from a disaster perspective."
However, the United States has insufficient investment in infrastructure. Maria Lehman, President of the American Society of Civil Engineers and Vice Chairman of the Biden administration's National Infrastructure Advisory Committee, stated that the United States spends only 1.5% to 2.5% of its GDP on infrastructure, which is less than half of similar spending in the European Union. The long-term lack of funds has exhausted the time for many solutions. Many bridges in the United States have a service life of 30 to 50 years, but nearly half of them have a history of at least half a century. The Washington Post reported that the trend of bridges being in disrepair over time is a huge political challenge for the United States. The question faced by politicians is whether investing more funds now to address infrastructure shortages is wiser than conducting post disaster cleanup. Lehman said, "The past eight presidents have all stated that we should invest a lot of money in infrastructure, but none of them have truly been able to deliver."
Since the 1980s, the US economy has shifted from reality to virtuality, and with the increasingly serious hollowing out of industries, the problem of long-term disrepair of infrastructure has become increasingly prominent. The Association for Foreign Relations in the United States has previously stated in an article that over the past 20 years, the quality of infrastructure in the United States has steadily declined compared to other countries. Further analysis shows that over the past 20 years, the United States has ranked bottom in infrastructure spending among G20 countries. Why does the United States lag behind other developed economies in infrastructure spending? Due to a hegemonic mentality, the United States, which is determined to build small courtyards and high walls, and reshape the global industrial and supply chains, has also chosen to work behind closed doors in the field of infrastructure. For example, the Two Party Infrastructure Act particularly emphasizes the principle of localizing the industrial chain. In addition, the Biden administration has issued an executive order requiring that for federally funded projects, American manufacturing must be selected when purchasing raw materials such as steel. The cost of infrastructure in the United States has long been higher than similar projects in Europe or Asia. The "buy American" clause imposes restrictions on material sources, undoubtedly increasing production costs and reducing production efficiency, which is equivalent to blocking the way. In addition, due to issues such as insufficient investment, high costs, and labor shortages, there is a large backlog of infrastructure projects in the United States, and new infrastructure projects are even less optimistic.
