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‘We are very vulnerable’: Several Wayne County bridges overdue for replacement

Wayne County commissioner is concerned

WAYNE COUNTY, Mich. – In the wake of a frightening bridge collapse in Pennsylvania, the Local 4 Defenders reveal several Metro Detroit bridges that were supposed to be replaced months ago.

“Michigan has the heaviest truck weight limits of any state in the country. We are 60,000 pounds more than any other state that’s 30 tons,” Wayne County Commissioner Ray Basham said.

Basham said the state of our bridges keeps him up at night. From the state level to the local level, Basham has been involved in transportation issues for years. none more vital than replacing bridges around Metro Detroit.

“God bless us, I hope nothing ever happens, but we’re very vulnerable,” Basham said. “My fingers are crossed. I hope nothing happens if you look at Pennsylvania and you look at just what happened there, it’s like, it’s scary.”

Basham said funding is the main issue why bridges have not yet been replaced. Basham worries that it is a race against time.

“The one that jumps out to me of all the bridges is the Ambassador Bridge. They build them for 100 years and that’s one of the busiest in this country and one of the heaviest weights on that bridge is all the semis,” Basham said.

Read: Complete Local 4 Defenders coverage


About the Authors
Shawn Ley headshot

Local 4 Defender Shawn Ley is an Emmy award-winning journalist who has been with Local 4 News for more than a decade.

Kayla Clarke headshot

Kayla is a Web Producer for ClickOnDetroit. Before she joined the team in 2018 she worked at WILX in Lansing as a digital producer.

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