WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today Congresswoman Maggie Goodlander (NH-02), Congressman Chris Pappas (NH-01), Senator Jeanne Shaheen (NH), and Senator Maggie Hassan (NH) are urging the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to work expeditiously with the New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) to evaluate Portsmouth’s Memorial Bridge, one of the 68 bridges across the country identified by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) as lacking up-to-date risk assessments.
The tragedy of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse is a reminder of the urgent need to assess bridge safety. The members wrote, “As part of the NTSB’s ongoing investigation into the March 26, 2024, containership Dali’s collision with the Francis Scott Key Bridge, and the bridge’s subsequent collapse, NTSB identified 68 bridges across 19 states and recommended that 30 bridge owners conduct a vulnerability assessment to determine the probability of bridge collapse. Memorial Bridge was one of these identified bridges.”
With time and safety being of the essence, the members urged, “We urge FHWA to quickly begin working with New Hampshire Department of Transportation (NHDOT) to review and respond to the NTSB Safety Recommendations memo. Additionally, we urge FHWA to follow the recommendations by working in coordination with the US Coast Guard and Army Corps to support NHDOT.”
