Florida International University President Mark Rosenberg hits the familiar notes of complacency and self-congratulation that administrators of contemporary US colleges specialize in, as he celebrates the installation last Saturday of his new $14.2 million pedestrian bridge, the first to be put into place using the wonderful new Accelerated Bridge Construction method.
A 950-ton section of a pedestrian bridge was swung into place over Southwest Eighth Street Saturday morning, connecting Florida International University with the city of Sweetwater.
The $14.2 million bridge at Southwest Eighth Street and Southwest 109th Avenue is being built using Accelerated Bridge Construction methods, which have been advanced at FIU. The university said the modular construction method reduces potential risks to workers, commuters and pedestrians and minimizes traffic interruptions.
The bridge is also made of self-cleaning concrete. When exposed to sunlight, titanium dioxide in the concrete traps pollutants and turns them a bright white, the university said.
Officials said the bridge should be completed early next year. FIU President Mark Rosenberg said in addition to connecting the campus with Sweetwater, the 289-feet-long bridge will become a destination for students and faculty.
“This bridge is not just someplace to someplace else,” Rosenberg said. “It will have places where people can study, where they can contemplate, where they can observe the incredible traffic and dynamism of West Dade.”
Currently, the university runs shuttles that ferry students across busy Eighth Avenue safely. A student died crossing Eighth Avenue in August after the shuttle service ended for the day.
Saturday installation marks the first time a bridge this large has been installed in this way.
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Denoument: The bridge collapsed yesterday, killing at least 6 people. 9 people were pulled out of the rubble alive. The contractor behind the bridge is a major political donor in Dade County.
The country’s in the very best of hands.
Dink Newcomb
My initial reaction to the flaming PR BS about it not being just a bridge from here to there and how it is a destination?
How long will it be before it is settled by homeless illegals and becomes a large brown spot on the hear future Miami version of SF’s feces location map!
FULLY WIRED, PLACES TO STUDY AND VIEW THE AWESOME TRAFFIC CONGETTION.
bob sykes
Publicity for the new bridge from a year ago indicated it was to be a cable-stayed bridge. The architect’s drawing show a large central pillar in the median strip of the highway with cables supporting the bridge itself. That pillar had not yet been built when the bridge was erected, so the principal support for the bridge was missing.
A stupefying blunder has been committed.
Steve Gregg
Really, isn’t this Trump’s fault somehow?
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