Municipal Finances: A Handbook for Local Governments by Catherine Farvacque-Vitkovic; Mihaly Kopanyi

Author:Catherine Farvacque-Vitkovic; Mihaly Kopanyi
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The World Bank

Box 5.3 Alaska’s Bridge to Nowhere

The U.S. state of Alaska received a federal grant of $398 million to build the Gravina Island Bridge to connect the town of Ketchikan, Alaska, with Gravina Island, which has about 50 residents and is the location of the Ketchikan Airport, which receives about 200,000 passengers a year. The bridge was planned to be nearly as long as the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco. For comparison, the Golden Gate Bridge carried about 118,000 vehicles per day, for a total of 43 million vehicles a year, in 2006.

After heated debate, this Alaska project was canceled; the grant was revoked and the money diverted to finance another Alaska project.

One lesson learned is that even though the local government and its 50 residents included this bridge in its capital plans, it is also essential that costs be reasonable and that the local government be able to operate and maintain its capital projects from its operating budget.

Source: http://askville.amazon.com/bridge-Alaska-literally.

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