Did the collapse of that Minneapolis bridge not teach us anything? Rushing construction of this magnitude is simply uncalled for.

So, why the rush? Could it have anything to do with the planned republican presidential nominating convention being held there in September of ‘08?

And another thing. While it’s really nice of Bush and Co. to kick in EXTRA money to get the bridge fixed in time, does it not bother him or anyone else that there are still Katrina victims living in squaller and doing without? That our troops over in Iraq are still being short-changed when it comes to having the proper equipment they need and deserve? $150-million would go a long way in helping those that are in need. It’s a damn shame it has to be wasted on a republican selling point.

Minnesota sets ambitious goal for bridge fix

Officials hope rebuilding, normally a 3-year project, will be done by 2008

Debris from the bridge collapse will be lifted from the site with a crane and other heavy equipment that began arriving on Monday.

MINNEAPOLIS - A plan to replace the bridge that collapsed into the Mississippi River last week is on the fastest of fast tracks: State officials want the span open by the end of next year, and contractors interested in the job must contact the state by dawn Wednesday.
[...]

“It is doable. It is a bit fast, but this is an emergency,” said Khaled Mahmoud with the Bridge Engineering Association in New York. “And if we are ever good at anything, it’s responding to emergencies.”

It took only seconds Wednesday night for the eight-lane, 1,900-foot steel truss Interstate 35W bridge, which opened in 1967, to collapse. Three days later, the state had already begun looking for companies interested in erecting a new bridge in just 16 months.
[...]

Erecting a new bridge like Minneapolis- would ordinarily take about three years, even if the design and building phases were overlapped to save time, said Bill Cox, owner of Corman Construction Inc. in Annapolis Junction, Md., a road and bridge construction firm.
[...]

President Bush on Monday signed legislation that directs $250 million to rebuild the bridge. The legislation, passed by Congress over the weekend, waives the $100 million federal limit per state for emergency relief funds, authorizing $250 million for rebuilding the bridge.

Associated Press

Source: MSNBC.com