This is a long, detailed article explaining the engineering involved in building a rail bridge. This rail bridge is part of a $3.7 billion light rail expansion approved by Puget Sound voters, known as the East Link, connecting Seattle's Chinatown / International District with Bellevue, across Lake Washington, via the I-90 floating bridge.
The East Link section of the expanding Link Light Rail system is on schedule and on budget, opening to riders in mid-2023.
This article in the Seattle Times about a public works project is yet one more example of what I find so confounding about Fort Worth's sad excuse for a newspaper of record, the Star-Telegram.
Yes, I know railing against a newspaper is a bit of a cliche, but in the Star-Telegram's case there are way too many instances of something legit to rail against.
I was not long in the D/FW zone before I realized something was not right about the Star-Telegram, seeing that newspaper acting as if it is some sort of bizarre propaganda tool for the local chamber of commerce.
Such as touting something that turned out to be a soon to fail glorified food court as being the first public market in Texas, and modeled after Seattle's Pike Place and markets in Europe. Or the time the Star-Telegram touted that a sporting goods store would become the #1 tourist attraction in Texas.
Sometimes I find the Star-Telegram propaganda and misinformation to just be simply amusing. Other times I find the propaganda to be borderline irresponsible.
Such as, way back near the start of this century, touting an ill-conceived, ineptly implemented pseudo public works project as being something which would turn Fort Worth into the Vancouver of the South.
Almost two decades later Fort Worth still bears zero resemblance to either of the Vancouvers of the North.
Now, back to the bridge subject.
We are now in year five of Fort Worth's infamous bridge fiasco part of what is known as the Trinity River Vision, trying to build three simple little bridges over dry land to connect the Fort Worth mainland to an imaginary island, across a cement lined ditch which may one day be dug and filled with polluted Trinity River water.
It is known, via sources other than the Star-Telegram, that there have been engineering problems and conflicts with various project engineers regarding the built in slow motion bridges.
But, unless I missed it, there, has not been a single article in the Star-Telegram detailing what those bridge design / construction issues are, and how they have caused these bridges to now have a completion timeline some point in the next decade.
The now almost universally discounted Riveron Review of the ongoing Boondoggle did not detail any of the actual problems with the bridge building. The Riveron Review did repeat the disinformation propaganda regarding why those bridges are being built over dry land, and why the highly regarded design of the West 7th Street bridge design was not used.
We talked about the Riveron Review fraud in Has The Trinity River Vision Riveron Review Been Officially Rejected?
Why is there not a single actual investigative type journalist reporting for the Star-Telegram who insists on trying to get to the truth of what is behind all the problems which would, in most modern towns in America, have been a long ago completed public works project?
How can this ridiculously ineptly implemented project in Fort Worth be touted as a vitally needed flood control project, needed to protect lives and property, when the project ambles along in ultra slow motion? That and the area in question has not flooded in well over a half a century, while other areas of Fort Worth, and Tarrant County, do have serious, unmitigated flood issues endangering life and property.
How did Oklahoma City manage to build that town's massive Bricktown development? A similar concept to Fort Worth's hapless Trinity River Vision. How did Tulsa manage to build its award winning Gathering Place development along the actually scenic Arkansas River?
Do Oklahoma City and Tulsa have actual real responsible newspapers of record honestly reporting on what goes on in their towns?
I've lost track of how many times I have made mention of the fact that Fort Worth suffers due to not having a real newspaper.
Lately it has been mentioned to me that there are some Fort Worth locals who are trying to bring real, much needed, investigative journalism to Fort Worth. I would not recommend holding ones breath waiting til that actually happens...
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