The Bridge to Nowhere

Note: This post was edited for clarity on advice of gracious reader MG.

Please bear with me here and follow me through this post.

You may recall the recent Transportation Bill passed by Congress. There was lots of talk about "pork" projects, but none got more press than Alaska Rep. Don Young's "Bridge to Nowhere," a span as long as the Golden Gate & taller than the brooklyn Bridge. And it connects Gravina (pop. 50) to Ketchikan (pop. 8,000). And it is going to cost the US Taxpayer $221 million.

Also in the same bill is another bridge, this one costing $231 million that will connect Anchorage with Port Mackenzie, a rural area with exactly one resident (but it is near Knik, Pop. 22)

Now let us do a little math. The money per resident of Anchorage to build their bridge is $887.45 (I am being generous assuming every single resident will use the bridge equally). The residents of Ketchikan have a slightly better deal. the money per resident of their town is $28695.65.

Now we move to New Orleans:
According to published reports, the Army corps of engineers requested $78 million for drainage projects & $27 million for hurricane protection projects around Lake Ponchartrain. However, the Federal Government approved only $36.5 million & $5.7 million respectively.

Now, let is do the math. If both projects were fully funded, the money spent would have been $216.64 per resident. However, the actual approved per resident was only $87.06.

This is our Federal Government. We vote for them. We let them get away with this. $29,000 per person in Alaska for dubious bridges vs. $87 per resident of New Orleans for flood protection. I can think of nothing better that crystallizes to me what is wrong with our elected officials. People MUST be held accountable.

Here is the real bridge to nowhere.