How safe are the bridges in the Puget Sound region?
There are more than 8,000 bridges in the state of Washington.
Some, like the state Route 520 floating bridge across Lake Washington, are brand new and state-of-the-art. Others, like the Aurora Bridge on state Route 99, are aging and well past their original life expectancy.
332 bridges in the state are rated in "poor" condition, meaning they have advanced deficiencies.
Several listeners want to know: How safe are the region's bridges? And how will they fare if we have a major earthquake?
Watch archival video of the most famous bridge collapse in Washington state history: the Tacoma Narrows Bridge (nicknamed "Galloping Gertie") in 1940
And see what an underwater bridge inspection looks like from the diver's point of view:
1 min
A diver inspects the 1950's-era Northport Bridge over the Columbia River. Inspectors are looking at a repair of previous erosion (scour) beneath the bridge.
Listen to the episode by clicking the play button above or on your favorite podcast app. SoundQs is a weekly podcast where our KUOW reporters tackle questions submitted by our listeners.
Have a question about the Seattle region for us to answer? Drop it here:
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Deborah Wang
Contributing Reporter, Editor, & Host
Deborah is a contributing reporter, editor and host at KUOW. Since joining the staff in 2005, Deborah has done everything from political reporting to podcast hosting and is now serving as Interim News Director. She is an award–winning radio and television journalist whose career spans more than three decades.
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