Getting There: Bridges and Roads Likely to Hold Up During the Cascadia Earthquake, but May Take Time to Reopen Fully

Olympia – the great. A 9.0-magnitude Cascadia earthquake that experts say will change the West Coast forever.

No one knows when, but scientists are sure that it will happen. Since the 2001 Nisquale earthquake, Washington has been working to better prepare its infrastructure for a major seismic event like the Cascadia earthquake.

But how long will our roads and bridges hold?

“If you look at the preparedness side, we’re in really good shape,” said Mark Gaines, the state’s bridge engineer. “But in terms of how well our structures are performing, we have a lot of work to do there.”

WSDOT is currently modifying bridges

The Department of Transportation has modified its bridges on the western side since 1990, but the effort became more urgent after the Nisquale earthquake.

As of February, the department has modified 323 bridges and partially modified another 114. This equates to an investment of $144 million.

Bridges do not mean only those that span a body of water. Large portions of Interstate 90 are considered bridges because they pass through other roads, according to the department.

All bridges have a superstructure – the part you drive on – that rests on a shaft pier that raises the bridge. Retrofitting means making sure that the columns under bridges don’t collapse during an earthquake. Part of the retrofit could be better fixing the columns to the superstructure or filling the hollow columns with cement plaster.

Since 2001, all retrofits of bridge superstructures and single-column shafts have been completed.

Gaines said the department focused mostly on bridges built in the 1960s and 1970s because they were designed “without any seismic considerations.”

Bridges already upgraded include the new Tacoma Narrows Bridge, the SR 520 Floating Bridge, and the new Alaska Way Tunnel in Seattle.

“But we had some very important bridges that weren’t there,” Gaines said.

Those still being retrofitted include multi-column bridges and those that require further analysis due to their large or unusual structures.

The Interstate Canal Bridge 5 and the deception/boat lane bridge on State Route 20 are two bridges that have not yet been modified due to the complexity of their structures.

WSDOT’s initial retrofit focuses on what it calls lifeline pathways. The 2017 legislature allocated $171 million for WSDOT to end the amendment of its Lifeline Bridges over a 10-year period.

The Interstate 5 Ship Canal Bridge and the Decoy Bridge/Canoe Trail on State Route 20 are not necessarily part of the Lifeline Route, but they are important because of their importance to society and the number of people that depend on them, Gaines said.

Lifeline bridges are those that are critical infrastructure and will allow the delivery of emergency vehicles, goods and supplies after a disaster.

The choice of lifeline routes is chosen based on a combination of how well bridges can withstand an earthquake, how quickly they can reopen and how much they are needed to reach support bases, said Taylor Hennessy, director of the critical infrastructure and private sector program at the state’s emergency department. Department.

The Department of Emergency Management prioritized routes from western Washington to eastern Washington, where most of the federal staging areas will be after a major earthquake.

Priority routes include I-90 to Grant County International Airport, I-5 between Joint Base Lewis McCord and Bellingham Airport, and Highway 101 between William Fairchild Airport in Port Angeles to Tacoma.

Bridges that are not a lifeline will be modified as funding allows. The department estimates that the cost of retrofitting all bridges in the state will cost about $1.5 billion. This includes 114 bridges that were partially modified but require additional work, and 471 bridges that had no previous retrofits.

It would take decades to finish all this work, even with the right funding.

It will take some time to reopen the bridges

Gaines said Washington has modified its bridges for “life safety,” meaning that they will hold enough to save lives but not necessarily enough to avoid structural damage. The higher standard for retrofitting focuses on recovery, which means that the bridge is often undamaged and can be used immediately after the event.

This standard is great for protecting people, Gaines said, but it doesn’t do much to recover.

A 2019 study by the Department of Homeland Security looked at the ability of state transportation systems to recover after a major earthquake, using a worst-case scenario. Hennessy said the study looked at the structure of the bridges, when they were built, the movement of the land and the type of soil around them.

“We didn’t think about restoration,” she said. “We looked at reopening, and how quickly we can reopen so we can move supplies in.”

According to the study, 621 bridges in the state will not be damaged by the earthquake and can be reopened immediately.

However, most bridges take longer. More than 300 bridges could reopen within two weeks of the earthquake. More than 600 bridges can take up to three months to reopen, and more than 350 bridges can take up to 21/2 years to reopen.

Other preparations

There are other things the country can do to prepare. While the bridges are important, WSDOT has other assets that have seismic needs, such as the roads themselves, Gaines said.

Earthquakes can cause the earth to liquefy, which means the vibration is so strong that it loosens the soil enough that the ground turns essentially into a liquid.

Hennessy said liquefaction could also play a role in how quickly bridges reopen after an earthquake.

According to a Department of Homeland Security study, most roads located on liquefiable soil can reopen within a day. About 13% will take up to two days to reopen, about 6% will take up to four days, and about 3% will take more than two weeks.

WSDOT could look at its ways to make sure it holds up to some liquefaction, but Gaines said there is no current funding to do so.

To prepare for a major earthquake, WSDOT, EMD, and other state and national agencies are participating in exercises to practice their response. Cascadia Rising’s second exercise will take place next summer. It gives those who will respond to the disaster, such as bridge engineers who can reopen roads and EMD personnel who will move supplies across the state, a chance to practice.

While practicing state agencies, the biggest advice to the public: Be prepared. Officials suggest keeping two-week supplies on hand at all times.

“It may take a while for the bridges to reopen,” Hennessy said. “Make sure people have supplies on hand is really important.”

work to watch

Repaving crews will be working on 31st Street between Division and Bernard Streets starting Thursday.

The Division Street east corridor between Montgomery and Baldwin Roads will be closed and merged through December 3 for the Quanta business.

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