| By Eliana Pisons |

Repercussions Impact Port of Baltimore and National Commerce

The collapse of Baltimore’s Key Bridge on March 29, 2024, has sent shockwaves through the city’s infrastructure, disrupting regional businesses and raising concerns about the safety of aging structures across the United States. The incident has far-reaching implications for national commerce and public safety.

Infrastructure Challenges and Federal Support

The collapse of the bridge in Baltimore is creating a logistical nightmare, disrupting ship traffic at the vital Port of Baltimore and causing chaos in cargo and commuter routes. As a major East Coast shipping hub, the port facilitates the passage of massive cargo vessels through the Patapsco River to reach the Atlantic Ocean. President Joe Biden has pledged federal support for the rebuilding efforts, with $60 million already allocated for initial costs.

Maryland Governor Wes Moore warns of a long and challenging road ahead, as salvage operations involving the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and commercial salvage companies gear up to reopen the shipping channel and remove the vessel wreckage. Additionally, while the collapse may not significantly impact global trade, it threatens the livelihoods of thousands of workers, including longshoremen and tugboat pilots, and presents environmental challenges due to breached hazardous material containers.

The incident has also sparked conversations about the state of infrastructure in the United States. Despite ongoing efforts to address aging bridges and roads, tragedies like the Baltimore bridge collapse highlight the urgent need for comprehensive maintenance and investment. Infrastructure failures not only disrupt commerce but also pose serious risks to public safety.

Root Causes and Investigations

The collapse has raised questions about the root causes of such disasters. The National Transportation Safety Board has launched investigations to determine why the bridge failed and what role external factors, such as the nearby ship traffic, might have played. Understanding these factors is crucial for preventing similar incidents in the future and ensuring the resilience of critical infrastructure networks.

Amidst Tragedy and Turmoil, An Opportunity To Build Back Better

While the loss of lives and livelihoods is unquestionably tragic, the bridge disaster provides an opportunity to build a new, larger, and more sustainable bridge. The old Key Bridge was an impressive engineering accomplishment when it was built in 1977. However, it had only two lanes in each direction, no breakdown lanes, and lacked pedestrian or bicycle pathways. This limited the bridge’s capacity to handle today’s increased vehicle traffic volumes, contributing to roadway congestion and pollution.

The urgent need for a new bridge provides Baltimore an opportunity to design a modern bridge with flexible traffic flow features such as additional lanes, express lanes, breakdown lanes, and changeable directional lanes for morning and evening rush hour traffic flows. And an adjacent dedicated pedestrian and bicycle sidewalk can also be incorporated into the design, promoting sustainable travel to reduce pollution and help connect residents and commuters living and working on both sides of the river.

Baltimore engineers can look to the Woodrow Wilson Bridge connecting Northern Virginia and Maryland as an example of a successful sustainable design that enables vehicle traffic as well as bicycle and pedestrian traffic. The Wilson Bridge across the Potomac River includes a 12-foot-wide paved bike and pedestrian lane, partially separated by a noise abatement glass wall. Residents laud the inclusion of a bike lane on the Wilson Bridge for its convenience in connecting communities and promoting local commerce options.

Calls for Renewed Focus on Safety

In the aftermath of the Baltimore Bridge collapse, stakeholders are calling for renewed focus and resources to address infrastructure challenges. From policymakers to business leaders, there is a collective recognition of the need to prioritize safety and sustainability in infrastructure development. Ensuring resilience of infrastructure is imperative for public safety and it is a tragedy that so many lives were lost due to this failure. Safety, sustainability, and a more resilient and efficient bridge design are all essential qualities that must be included as Baltimore recovers and rebuilds after the disaster.

Photo Credit: NTSB