Scrap prices bring favorable bridge demo bids

A local media report indicates a city in Ohio will pay less than expected to demolish a bridge, thanks to the steel content of the aging structure combined with a high-value ferrous scrap market.

A late March online report from the Youngstown Vindicator in Ohio says the three bids that city received to demolish a bridge over an abandoned railroad right of way were “significantly less than the city’s estimate” for the project.

A deputy director of public works quoted by the newspaper said, “There’s so much steel on the bridge, which was a factor in the estimate being high. We’re conservative with the salvage value of steel.”

While the city reported estimated it would receive bids in the $950,000 range, instead the three bids made checked in at between $580,000 and $650,000.

The Vindicator describes the structure as a 78-foot steel girder structure that is in “poor condition.”