OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (Sept. 8, 2016) – The Oklahoma Turnpike Authority (OTA) has begun its annual bridge inspections along the Cimarron Turnpike. These routine inspections were planned ahead of Saturday’s 5.8 magnitude earthquake.
OTA maintenance crews and engineers will be out along the turnpike looking at all the structures thoroughly as part of its annual inspections of all bridge structures on the turnpike system.
“We perform routine inspections yearly on all of our bridges and this just happened to be scheduled this week,” Tim Gatz, Executive Director of the OTA said. “Despite the strongest earthquake in Oklahoma history, all of our bridges passed inspection on Saturday and are safe for travel.”
After Saturday’s earthquake, OTA maintenance workers and engineers inspected 254 bridges on the Will Rogers, Cimarron, Turner, Kilpatrick, Creek and Cherokee Turnpikes. All of the bridges passed inspection. There was one bridge on the Cimarron Turnpike that received minor damage, mostly cosmetic, but is safe for travel.
The OTA inspects all of its bridges on an annual basis and looks for any type of stress and/or fractures that could compromise the stability of the structure.
For more information about the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority, please visit www.pikepass.com.
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About Oklahoma Turnpike Authority
Oklahoma Turnpike Authority was established in 1947 to construct, operate and maintain Oklahoma turnpikes. Today, Oklahoma turnpikes are the safest and quickest ways to travel across the state. Oklahoma Turnpike Authority is managing multiple renovations throughout the state to maintain and operate the turnpike system to the highest standard. To learn more about the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority and recent projects, visit, www.pikepass.com.
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