If every bridge can be brought down by an oversized truck, we've got a problem. But hey, there's no transportation issue that can't be solved with a road diet.

Just wait. The "progressives" will find a way to hold the repair hostage to more funding for bike lanes and light rail.

Sacrificing one the most successful north/south arterials in the region for a congested tunnel/park with half its capacity and none of its access will be wistfully remembered as one of the dumbest transportation projects in our history.

Don't you just looooove the fog machine? Now that truly took a California architect! Of course, if it were a "progressive" Seattle architect, we'd get an expanded "sculpture park" next to some apodments. Oh, and bike lanes. Lots and lots of bike lanes.

Underused by motorists? You mean like the guy from West Seattle who ran a red light on Marginal Way and smacked into the back of a truck? Underused by whom, again?

Just wait: The "progressives" will find a way to hold the repairs hostage to more funding for bike lanes, and/or tolling every road in the state, or raising the gas tax and diverting that money to bike lanes and fixed rail.

So will the new taxes now go towards preservation, especially on I-5, as former DOT Sec. MacDonald warned was being ignored last week, or in addition to all the new Mega Projects the DOT is busting a gut get started?

I find it amazing that people are still pushing this boondoggle as positive in any fashion. MANY of us who weren't listened to suggested that light rail needed to connect more populated areas like Ballard, GreenLake, UW, and even the East side FIRST. Build to areas that were more affluent first and get ridership high. Promote the success of rail to those areas, that would transport workers from the outer neighborhoods that contained higher percentages of downtown workers, and NOT be a glorified fast taxi from the airport. WE weren't listened to at all, and instead are now left with the mess of transit that noone uses. At the very least at this point, they need to build several large parking garages along the far southern end of the current line, and allow commuters to travel to those garages, and take transit the rest of the way in. Eliminate the transit stops through the ghetto, and make Light Rail be an express service for South King county commuters to get to downtown in under 10-15 minutes. Enough is enough.

Washington State DOT data at http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/mapsdata/tools/traffictrends/ … indicates 70,000 average daily traffic on I-5 Skagit River Bridge total in both directions.

One more reason: Immigrants have the enthusiasm of the newly converted,
and running for mayor is one way to express it. Also, the audacious and ambitious everywhere tend to move on--to become mayor of San Francisco, for example.

I want to be the first person to announce that:
George Bush did it.
The bridge collapse in no way reflects on the priorities of the the State of WA. elected officials, Union bosses, or any Democratic person elected to public office. This horror, this heart wrenching tragedy, can be laid squarely at the feet of any mean spirited person who might refuse to increase taxes.
The new governor, who even now, is being driven to the exact location of the photo and news opp, will provide verbal proof that he cares, and will do everything in his power to repair this blemish on the WADOT. He will further announce, later this weekend, that he will seek new taxes to pay for routine maintenance of roads, highways, and bridges.
God Bless America
Jamesmi@frontier.com

I love Tom, but the Monorail is forever. Now the viaduct, that is ripe for re-purposing. http://katemartinformayor.com/2013/05/09/the-viaduct-park/

An oversized truck strikes the bridge and brings it down? Just like that?

How many hundreds of bridges do we have in our state that are this age or older?

Every bridge needs to be built to withstand accidents and trucks. Not to mention earthquakes, fires and of course politicians.

I wouldn't call not maintaining our infrastructure as 'going cheap'. I'd call it seriously ill-conceived, and irresponsible.

DOT, who should be fired? This seems to fall on you.

As the infrastructure tumbles, I hope dollars are returned to maintaining and rebuilding what we already depend upon.

No more expensive commuter trains to nowhere, no more studies that try to figure out new ways to get us out of our cars. Put that all aside, and pay attention to what is right in front of us: our roads, bridges and ferries are old, crumbling, and very, very unsafe.

Well, an update on the Skagit bridge: looks like it was caused by an oversized truck striking the bridge. But that calls into question the structural standards for bridges. (Granted, this bridge was constructed in the '50's.) Just shows this stuff is serious, and seriously expensive to construct and maintain. We can't go cheap, which seems to be the aim of many reckless and irresponsible elected officials.