An $80-million fix

The Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority says it can fix the Crosstown bridge and afford the price overrun. State legislators should give it a chance.

Repairing the Lee Roy Selmon commuter bridge in Tampa will be an enormous but essential undertaking. Many of the bridge's foundations will need stronger supports, at a cost of up to $80-million, according to a consultants' report made to the Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority. The price tag is alarming, but the bridge will play a vital role in meeting Hillsborough's traffic needs. The authority, under the management of a new director, should have the state's support for the time being to show it can finish the job.

The 6-mile bridge was to open next summer and serve as a commuter expressway for people who live in eastern Hillsborough and work near downtown Tampa. Three lanes would bring traffic into Tampa from Brandon in the morning and return eastbound at night. The bridge would be a lifeline for thousands who now rely on two congested routes to serve the fast-growing eastern suburbs.

The project was ahead of schedule until April, when a support column sank 11 feet into unstable soil, toppling two sections of roadway. In July, a second column sank 1.3 inches, and since then engineers have worked to determine the cause and extent of the problem.

Expressway officials are trying to fashion repairs even as state lawmakers are examining whether to disband the authority and allow the project to be taken over by the state. The first priority needs to be on determining the scope of repairs and arranging financing to cover the cost. Motorists will get beyond this troubled history if they have confidence the authority is taking a conservative approach to their safety. Engineers should be focused on their work, not on beating a timetable and certainly not on any turf war between the authority and its critics.

Ralph Mervine, a candid troubleshooter hired this month to replace Pat McCue as authority director, says he is confident the agency can repair the bridge and afford the foreseeable price overrun on the $350-million project. The agency also said it has already learned from mistakes made on the project. If the repair plan is inadequate, the flaws will be evident soon enough and state transportation officials could still take over the project.

All things equal, it is better for the community to have the expressway authority remain in local hands. The elevated bridge is designed to be a long-term asset, and any decision over the agency that runs it needs to be made with the same consideration for the long term.

[Last modified November 25, 2004, 23:20:23]