Collapsed 35W Bridge Rebuilt in Minneapolis, Other Projects Lagging

by Josh Lew on

Last August, the collapse of the 35W bridge over the Mississippi River in Minneapolis captured national attention. Though the loss of life was significantly less than it could have been, the idea that a collapse could and did happen had people cringing and gritting their teeth whenever their crossed any bridge.

A new bridge was being planned within hours of the demise of the old one. Local politicians pushed for and received federal funding to aid in both the clean-up and construction of a new span. The new structure was slated to open at the end of this year, but finished ahead a schedule. I drove across it for the first time this morning. It…well…looked like a bridge, but I guess that was what they were going for. Nothing spectacular, but seemingly sturdy.

Here’s the problem I have with the new 35W Bridge. It was completed quickly because politicians and the Department of Transportation’s had their necks on the line. Meanwhile, the Wakota Bridge, connecting the Twin Cities to the eastern suburbs and Wisconsin has been floundering in a state of half-completeness for as long as I can remember. On separate occasions, engineering mistakes and a budget crunch have halted work for months at a time. Sure, the new 35W bridge is awesome, but out of the spotlight, the Minnesota Department of Transportation is lacking. Readers: Is your state’s DoT as inept, or is it just me?

Dept. of Transportation: Airlines should auction off flight slots

by Jeffrey White on

Auctions are coming to the New York area — but probably not the kind you’d want to attend.

The Dept. of Transportation has announced that it plans to hold a series of “slot auctions” at Newark Liberty International Airport and John F. Kennedy International Airport. What are slot auctions? Slots amount to the number of planes that can either take off or land at an airport. An airport sells its slots to airlines, which then own a particular time, which they subsequently incorporate into their flight schedule. A Continental flight departing Newark at 4:40 p.m. is one such slot owned by Continental.

What the DOT wants to do is to give airlines a certain amount of slots at JFK or Newark — 20 a day, according to the current proposal. The DOT then wants to force airlines to auction off a certain amount of their slots above that threshold. At Kennedy, the DOT is proposing that airlines make 10 percent of their slots above the benchmark available to auction, with the money going to improve congestion or to auction off 20 percent of their additional slots and keep the money for themselves. A similar proposal is afoot for Newark. In either case airlines can bid on their own slots.

What does all this mean? Admittedly, it’s confusing. The Associated Press reported yesterday on the plan and other measures that DOT is proposing, all of which the Air Transport Association is fighting.

However, it comes down to this: The government is trying to make changes that will ultimately relieve congestion at the two airports that are pretty much the worst for on time arrivals and departures, while sponsoring a little more competition in these busy markets. Seems like passengers could stand to benefit from that.