Safety Concerns
Pin and hanger assemblies are considered fracture critical bridge components, meaning that the assemblies are non-redundant and failure of these systems could cause part or all of the bridge to collapse. The collapse of the Mianus River Bridge in Connecticut exposed potential flaws with pin and hanger bridges that could lead to catastrophic failures, if left unchecked. Because of this, state departments of transportation incur costly expenses on bridges with pin and hanger assemblies, as they require constant inspection and maintenance. As a result of these safety concerns, and advances in bridge design to allow longer spans, pin and hanger assemblies are no longer used on new bridges in the United States.
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