Faith Alert - Can We Trust Our Engineers?

High Mech?: "Abolhassan Astaneh-Asl, a civil engineering professor at the University of California, Berkeley, who has spent 20 years studying the Bay Bridge, called the initial crack a warning sign of potentially bigger safety issues with the bridge.

'The repair they were doing was really a Band-Aid,' said Astaneh-Asl, who criticized Caltrans at the time for rushing to reopen the bridge.

Astaneh-Asl said the failure of the repair job demonstrates the need for a longer-term solution. The age and design of the bridge make it susceptible to collapse, especially if commercial tractor-trailers are allowed to continue using it, he said.

'I think Caltrans is putting public relations ahead of public safety,' he said."