I-35W Mississippi River bridge
The I-35W Mississippi River bridge was an eight-lane steel arch bridge in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It opened in 1967. It was the third busiest bridge in Minnesota.[1] It carried over 140,000 vehicles daily.[2]
On August 1, 2007, during the evening rush hour, a major failure caused the bridge to fall down. The bridge collapse killed 13 people and injured at least 145 more people. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said a problem with the design probably caused the bridge to fall. They said a too-thin steel plate ripped along a line of rivets. Also, additional weight at the time due to ongoing rehabilitation construction led to the major failure that caused the bridge to fall into the Mississippi River.[3] It later was replaced with the I-35W Saint Anthony Falls Bridge which opened in September 2008. The new bridge that opened in 2008 carries 10 lanes.
References
change- ↑ "I-35W Bridge Collapse Myths". Weeks, John A. III. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
- ↑ "2006 Traffic Volumes" (PDF). The Minnesota DOT. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
- ↑ Design Errors Factor in 2007 Bridge Collapse (Report). USA Today. Retrieved August 14, 2018.