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NTSB: Francis Scott Key Bridge risk far above guidance; agency urges vulnerability assessments for 68 bridges
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Summary
National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy told the House Appropriations Subcommittee the Key Bridge was found to be well above AASHTO risk thresholds and that the agency has urged 30 owners of 68 bridges to complete vulnerability assessments and take action if warranted.
The National Transportation Safety Board told a House Appropriations Subcommittee that the Francis Scott Key Bridge’s collision risk exceeded long-standing engineering guidance and prompted urgent recommendations for other high‑risk crossings.
At a subcommittee hearing, Jennifer Homendy, Chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board, said the NTSB’s rapid vulnerability assessment of the Key Bridge found the structure’s calculated risk was “almost 30 times greater than the risk threshold that AASHTO sets for critical bridges,” and that Pier 17 was “almost 15 times greater.” Homendy said the board asked 30 bridge owners of 68 bridges to perform similar vulnerability assessments and take immediate action if warranted.
Why it matters: The recommendation is aimed at preventing another vessel‑strike collapse after the Key Bridge incident killed construction workers and injured others. Homendy told lawmakers the NTSB accelerated months of assessment work into six months to provide timely data to bridge owners and federal partners.
Homendy described the steps the NTSB took: when Maryland Transportation Authority could not produce a prior vulnerability assessment, NTSB teams collected the necessary data, ran the AASHTO‑recommended calculations and issued urgent safety recommendations to bridge owners and federal partners. She said the AASHTO guidance from 1991 and its 2009 update recommended vulnerability assessments for existing bridges but many owners had not completed them.
Members of the subcommittee pressed for next steps and federal support. Representative Rosa DeLauro, Ranking Member of the full committee, asked what Congress could do to strengthen state‑federal collaboration; Homendy recommended assistance from the Federal Highway Administration, U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to help owners collect data and complete assessments. Sheriff T.K. Rutherford (Jacksonville area) noted that several bridges serving major freight and port corridors—he cited the Dames Point Bridge and Jaxport—appear on the NTSB list and urged immediate state follow‑up.
Homendy said the board was not asserting that every bridge on the list is at imminent risk of collapse; rather, the objective is to identify risk mathematically so owners can take proactive mitigation if calculations warrant it. She referenced historical precedents—such as the Sunshine Skyway improvements after a 1980 vessel strike—that led to substantial safety measures.
The NTSB recommended that bridge owners use AASHTO’s vulnerability‑assessment method and that federal partners provide technical assistance and guidance on data collection. The agency said it issued the recommendations as urgent to prompt immediate action by owners and federal partners.
Homendy closed her comments by noting the NTSB’s role is investigative and advisory: “We recommended … that 30 bridge owners, of 68 bridges conduct a vulnerability assessment to determine risk. And if warranted, take immediate action.”
The subcommittee did not vote on any measure during the hearing; members asked the agency to return with further updates on owners’ responses and any proposed federal assistance programs.
