I-35W Bridge Collapse: Travel Impacts and Adjustment Strategies

On August 1, 2007, the I-35W bridge crossing the Mississippi river collapsed. In addition to the human tragedy that it caused, the bridge failure also impacted how people moved. The bridge on average carried 140,000 vehicles daily and the failure required a significant amount of traffic find new routes to reach their destinations. In its aftermath travelers had to adjust their trips, requiring them to possibly adopt changes in route, mode, departure time, or foregoing some trips. Those who had to adapt were not just the ones that previously used the bridge. With the I-35 traffic using alternate routes, those who saw or anticipated higher traffic on their regular routes also found it necessary to make adjustments. In this study we ask a sample of people that were recruited for another study if their travels had been impacted by the failure of the bridge, how they coped, and what impacts it had on their other activities.