35W bridge collapse offers nation infrastructure lesson

Minneapolis, Minn. — Roberto Ballarini was next to the collapsed I-35W bridge in Minneapolis the morning after. He stood among people from the FBI, Homeland Security and transportation officials as an invited expert. Even then, Ballarini says, there was intense interest in what role weakened gusset plates may have played in the collapse of the span. Now, more than a year later, Ballarini says he does not disagree with the National Transportation Safety Board's official finding that underdesigned gusset plates were the root cause of the disaster.

"We also identified that as the possible culprit in this tragic event," he says.

The, 'we,' Ballarini refers to are a couple of other department of civil engineering faculty and some students at the U. They'll present pictures and a computer simulation of the collapse.

Their exploration, Ballarini says, is an academic exercise for the benefit of students and not an investigation meant to compete with the NTSB.

Ballarini, ever the diplomat, describes the new 35W bridge as, "unassumingly elegant," and then in an aside says he would have added some touches to make it a bit more aesthetically pleasing.

Ballarini singles out what no one should miss; a typical completion time for a project the size of the new bridge is three years but it was completed in 11 months.

"That's also a testament to the industry in the United States that structure like that could be built so fast," he says.

The lesson from the 35W bridge building experience is if America decides to get to work repairing and replacing our infrastructure the job can be done fast and well.

And, Ballarini says, there's no shortage of work.

Italian by birth, Brooklyn by upbringing, Ballarini is not shy about laying it on the line. The country's crumbling infrastructure is a national security issue.