I have always felt that most overpasses in the US were in much better shape than those up here in Quebec. In addition to a virtual total lack of maintenance, we also pour down salt during the winter months. The salt enters the small cracks in the concrete and accelerates the rusting of the re-bars which then deteriorates the concrete more quickly. We have very high gas tax, most costly licence plates and drivers licences but much of this revenue goes into other areas, not the roads.
Two or three years ago, an overpass under construction just north of Montreal collapsed killing a few people. Last year a 40 year old overpass in the same area collapsed killing 5 people. The public inquiry into this latest collapse has uncovered poor design, poor construction, poor maintenance, poor engineering, etc. Of course, everyone involved from the construction company to the government engineers are pointing their fingers at "the other guys". As a tax payer, all I can do is read the reports and wonder how much this is going to cost.
As a result of this latest inquiry, a couple of hundred overpasses and bridges have been identified as needing more frequent inspections and a bunch have now been limited to much lower weight restrictions. The government is so worried that more are going to collapse that they have already demolished 2 more overpasses and have begun to study the demolishion of several more including an entire, heavily travelled interchange just west of down town Montreal. The road network up here is in terrible condition and getting worse every year.
Most major freeway construction in North America took place 40 to 45 years ago. Many of the overpasses and bridges are now in need of serious repair or replacement but it looks like the politicians hope that they can ignore the situation until they are out of office and collecting their big fat government pensions.
Then it will be someone else's mess to clean up.
Wayne