What federal funds can mean to Michigan bridges and innovations with carbon fiber

On this week’s Talking Michigan Transportation podcast, Matt Chynoweth, MDOT’s chief bridge engineer, returns to discuss what President Biden’s Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) means to Michigan bridges. 

This conversation was already scheduled when news broke about the local bridge that collapsed in Pittsburgh. Two weeks ago, U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg was in Pennsylvania to announce the state would receive $1.6 billion in IIJA funds to repair or replace some 3,000 poor bridges in the state. 

Michigan’s share of IIJA funds for bridges is $563 million over five years. Chynoweth explains how investments will be prioritized based on asset management principles. He also puts the funding in context with the overall needs for bridges owned by the state, counties, cities, and villages across Michigan. 

Later, Chynoweth talks about work MDOT is doing with Lawrence Technological University on carbon fiber as an alternative to steel-reinforced bridges. Some pioneering work in Michigan will allow bridges to last much longer (with estimates of up to 100 years or longer) and save millions of dollars in the long term. 

Chynoweth also explains how carbon fiber strands have a tensile strength comparable to steel but resist corrosion and require less maintenance over time. MDOT is deploying the materials strategically, using them on higher-volume routes. Two bridges are currently being built with carbon fiber reinforced beams as part of MDOT's massive I-94 modernization project in Detroit.

Podcast photo: Strong and durable, carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) strands are changing the way bridges are built.