N.J. bridge needs: $13.6 billion

N.J. bridge needs: $13.6 billion New Jersey needs to spend $13.6 billion to fix structurally deficient and functionally obsolete bridges, according to a report released Tuesday by New Jersey Department of Transportation Commissioner Kris Kolluri.
   The NJDOT's Final Bridge Report and Capital Investment Analysis, the result of Gov. Jon S. Corzine’s Aug. 2 directive, said the state will have to increase its bridge total funding to $800 million annually, an increase of $291 million over current spending level.
   The department said this would enable NJDOT to address the existing backlog of structurally deficient and functionally obsolete bridges and substantially limit other bridges from becoming structurally deficient.
   The report’s recommendations include:
   * Increasing state bridge funding to $650 million annually, and to local governments by $25 a year, to substantially reduce the backlog of structurally deficient bridges over a 10-year period.
   * Maintaining funding levels for the bridge inspection program mandated under the National Bridge Inspection Standards and the state’s culvert inspection program.
   * Initiation of a program to inventory, identify jurisdiction and inspect county-municipally-owned culverts as a state inspection program in order to identify needs and maintain the safety of the state's roads.