Election issues for adjusters: Part 3

In October, PBS’s “Nova” had a program entitled, “Why Bridges Fail.” It focused largely on European bridge collapses, like the August 15, 2018, collapse of the Morandi Bridge in Genoa, Italy, that killed 43 people. The story also mentioned the I-35 Mississippi River Bridge collapse in Minneapolis, and the collapse of the U.S. 35 bridge over the Ohio River at Gallipolis, both discussed previously in this column.

What causes such disasters? The program suggested several factors that affect thousands of bridges in the U.S.: age, increased weight of vehicles on the bridges, and deterioration of the metal (cables and braces) that hold the bridges together. It is “infrastructure,” and that should be the most important issue to consider in this year’s Presidential election.

Both candidates give a passing nod to the “need to improve infrastructure,” but unless the elected official pushes Congress to act, nothing will get done because fixing our infrastructure is so expensive. Thousands of miles of interstate highways built in the 1950s and 1960s need to be updated or replaced, as do hundreds of thousands of highway bridges. Clogged waterways and locks need repair, airports need updating, as does the entire FAA air control system.

Railroads fix their right-of-ways, bridges and signals; the Positive Train Control system mandated by the federal government has cost the railroads millions, costs passed onto shippers, but not the taxpayers. Have you seen an airline fixing the runways at the local airport, or a truck line patching an interstate?

Sooner or later, something in the infrastructure will break. It may be in the power grid, a pipeline or a communication system for emergency services. Regardless of who is responsible for repairs, the politicians will need to act, whether they are in city hall or Congress. When a gas or oil pipeline breaks, it is a fiery disaster; when power grids or communication system equipment is damaged in a storm, flood or fire, it is voters — and nonvoters — who yell, “How did this happen?!” It happened because our infrastructure is an after-thought.

Roads for driverless vehicles

I had trouble falling asleep one night and thought of a story I’d written perhaps 40 years earlier. Before the Civil War, there were two cities on the banks of the Cuyahoga River, Cleveland to the east and Ohio City to the west. They were rivals and targeted each other’s economies.

One evening the irritated Cleveland citizens descended to the river and tore up the Ohio City’s end of a bridge across it. The following morning an Ohio City farmer was sitting, sound asleep, while his horse, which knew the route well, plodded along. When it came to the missing half-bridge it kept walking, right into the river, along with the wagon and the farmer. While different from today’s self-driving trucks, the need to keep alert for damaged or missing infrastructure is still just as important.

There are dozens of issues our Presidential candidates will promote to win elections. Promises will be made (but rarely kept) and each will try to slander the opposition’s suggestions.

Between infrastructure, refugees, global warming and health care for all, infrastructure is probably the most urgent and most expensive. Consider that when you cast your ballot.

Ken Brownlee, CPCU, ARM, (brownleeken029@gmail.com) is a former adjuster and risk manager based in Atlanta, Ga. He now authors and edits claims adjusting textbooks. Opinions expressed are the author’s own.

Editor’s Note: This is the third installment of a four-part series.

Related:

• Election issues for adjusters: Part 1
• Election issues for adjusters: Part 2