Free Republic

Mobs of crazed, pro-Hamas lefties have been blocking traffic this week in various parts of the country this week, shutting down bridges and blocking access to air ports. As usual, very few of them are being arrested or prosecuted for this terrorism, but those who are held accountable are being bailed out. Where is the bail money coming from? Organizations funded by George Soros, naturally. Left-Wing Dark Money Behemoth Behind Bail Fund for 'Free Palestine' Bridge Blockershttps://t.co/vriY8ogOoN — Washington Free Beacon (@FreeBeacon) April 15, 2024 From the Washington Free Beacon: Left-Wing Dark Money Behemoth Behind Bail Fund for ‘Free Palestine’...

OAKLAND, Calif. (KGO) -- Protesters are causing major traffic issues across the Bay Area, including in Oakland and on the Golden Gate Bridge, as part of a worldwide economic blockade in solidarity with Palestine. The first protest Monday morning happened on northbound I-880 in Oakland at 5th Ave., where Protesters brought barrels filled with concrete onto the highway and chained themselves to the barrels. Law enforcement had to cut through the barrels before they could arrest the protesters. Only one lane has been opened. Southbound I-880 has also closed as hundreds of protesters made their way onto the highway with...

Authorities in Pittsburgh closed McKees Rocks Bridge as a precaution after several barges broke loose on the Ohio River late Friday. There is a risk that the barges could come into contact with the “substructure” of the bridge, the McKees Rocks Police Department said in a statement early Saturday confirming the closure. The department said it closed the bridge because it was “not willing to take the risk.” The bridge opened in 1931 and stretches more than 1 mile across the Ohio River. As part of the Blue Belt, the innermost of several roads that loop around Pittsburgh, the bridge...

Guest editorial by Jim Nelles: The video footage of the Singaporean-flagged cargo vessel, the Dali, crashing into the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore is truly horrifying. Video footage shows the ship’s lights flickering on and off, indicating it lost power shortly before crashing into the bridge’s stanchion. The video also shows black smoke coming from the ship’s exhaust vents, indicating that the crew was trying to restart diesel engines. Unfortunately, eight workers were performing construction on the bridge at the time of collapse, only two of whom were rescued. Given the temperatures of the Patapsco River, they must be...

Amassive cargo ship crashed into a major bridge in the Baltimore harbor early Tuesday morning, leading to a near-total collapse of the span and sending vehicles plunging into the frigid water below. A search-and-rescue effort is underway, with divers and emergency personnel desperately combing the area for people believed to have fallen from the collapsing bridge, officials said. Latest Developments Mar 26, 9:49 AM Governor declares state of emergency Maryland Gov. Wes Moore has declared a state of emergency following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore. "We are working with an interagency team to quickly deploy...

They are ringing in the new year with a resolution for more revenue. A 63-cent hike on the current toll rate for The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey crossings takes effect on Sunday. The toll for E-ZPass users will increase by 4.3% to $15.38 from $14.75 during peak hours — 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on weekends

Freedom of speech is in danger in the United Kingdom. A year ago, we ran a post about a woman who was arrested after admitting she was praying silently across the street from an abortion clinic. No signs, no bullhorn, nothing. Praying silently. They arrested her again this October for the same crime. In the meantime, you have climate alarmists destroying artwork and gluing themselves to the street. A very concerned NBC News reports that "scores" of people in Britain have been arrested "for walking slowly down the street." For walking slowly down the street, scores of people have been...

Hundreds of pro-Palestine protesters have shut down Manhattan Bridge on one of the busiest shopping weekends of the year to demand a 'permanent ceasefire' in Gaza. The New York protest was led by Jewish Voice for Peace, an activist group that describes itself as being the 'largest progressive Jewish anti-Zionist organization in the world' predominantly consisting of people from the faith.

The vehicle explosion at the Rainbow Bridge connecting the cities of Niagara Falls, New York and Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada on Wednesday is reported to be an attempted terrorist attack. Fox News reporter Alexis McAdams reports sources say this was an attempted terrorist attack, “High level police sources tell me this is an attempted terrorist attack. Sources say the car was full of explosives. Both men inside dead.” A U.S. Border Patrol agent is reported to have been injured. The vehicle is reported to have been on the U.S. side approaching to enter Canada when it ... exploded. Fox reports...

The UK government was warned Tuesday by the U.N. that handing out long jail sentences to climate protesters could stifle public displays of dissent. The Just Stop Oil protesters in question caused traffic gridlock after scaling the Dartford Crossing Bridge for almost 40 hours in October last year, as Breitbart News reported. They were later accused of having “blood on their hands” after two women died in car crashes after being diverted from the bridge after the anti-fossil fuel activists had shut it down. Eco-extremists in Britain have a history of blocking motorways, junctions, and city centre intersections. The BBC...

Pro-Palestinian protesters swarmed the roadways on the Brooklyn Bridge, shutting down traffic on the historic span. Masses of demonstrators inundated the Manhattan-bound side of the bridge, chanting the antisemitic refrain “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” as others climbed on the bridges’ metal structures. “Resistance is justified when people are occupied,” other marchers chanted as they made their way across the bridge On the pedestrian walkway, people standing and watching the demonstrators shouted boos at their procession.

An engineer who designed a bridge that collapsed hours after opening in rural Saskatchewan in 2018 is prohibited from practicing for now. The Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Saskatchewan’s (APEGS) discipline committee panel sent Scott O. Gullacher an interim order outlining the stipulations on Jan. 24, 2023. Gullacher was found guilty on three counts of professional misconduct, with one count relating to a formal complaint on the Dyck Memorial Bridge in the R.M. of Clayton, Sask. which collapsed hours after opening on Sept. 14, 2018. He was found to not have practiced in a careful and diligent manner...

Line painting and other finishing touches continued Tuesday at the new Fern Hollow Bridge in the city’s East End, with a dedication ceremony planned Wednesday and completion of bridge reconstruction work anticipated Thursday, officials said. A date for reopening the bridge to traffic has not been set, according to Pennsylvania Department of Transportation spokesman Steve Cowan, but it was anticipated it would be within a week. The busy, 500-foot Forbes Avenue bridge, which connected Squirrel Hill to Point Breeze and Park Place, collapsed onto a popular hiking trail about 100 feet below the road in Frick Park in January. Ten...

For months, the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation has been saying that $5.6 billion in additional federal funds through the Biden administration’s stimulus program won’t come close to addressing all of the state’s road and bridge needs. Now, a national online research organization agrees, at least on money for needed bridge work. InMyArea Research released a report last week that claims the $26.2 billion in stimulus funds for bridges nationwide over the next five years falls an estimated $7.3 billion short of the amount needed just to upgrade bridges rated in poor condition. Pennsylvania’s allocation of $1.63 billion for bridges is...

(CNN) - It’s so hot across the globe, roads and roofs are melting. The deadly heat waves of the last week have sparked strange infrastructural events around the world as millions endure searing temperatures that are still on the rise. The heat-related events also speak to aging infrastructures worldwide, most of which – roads, bridges, railroads, buildings – are not prepared for the sweltering conditions as of late. So how hot has it been, exactly? Well… It’s so hot, the runway at a London airport melted The United Kingdom saw its hottest day on record Tuesday, when temperatures breached 40...

Pennsylvania could continue to work with a partnership headed by an Australian firm to replace nine major bridges across the state and maintain them for for 30 years. It just has to find another way to pay for the work now that adding tolls of $1 or $2 per vehicle is off the table. The state Department of Transportation continues to review how it will replace the bridges, which are estimated to cost $2.5 billion. They are considered economically important structures, but the state said it doesn’t have the funds to replace them. One possibility is that the state continues...

Our lives are inevitably bound by and shaped by the structures around us. We live in them, calling them homes; we go through them, calling them tunnels; we move on them or thanks to them, calling them roads, or bridges. Salginatobelbrücke designed by Robert Maillart, 1930The bridge has a particularly interesting function: it connects two places in a more complex way than a road does. The bridge helps to elevate the passenger, allowing them to move above a body of water, a valley, or a three-dimensional urban labyrinth of roads and crossings. But apart from being a beacon of utility,...

The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation will negotiate with a nine-member group of contractors headed by an Australian firm to replace nine bridges proposed for tolling at an estimated cost of $2.5 billion. The group — which calls itself Bridging Pennsylvania Partners — lists Macquarie Infrastructure Developments LLC of Sydney as the lead contractor and includes FCC Construccion, S.A., of Spain, as well as six Pennsylvania companies. They include Joseph B. Fay Co. and Shikun & Binui America Inc., of Pittsburgh. The contract will require that 65% of the work be done by Pennsylvania firms. State Sen. Wayne Langerholc Jr., R-Johnstown...

The toll lanes for Florida’s I-4 Ultimate, a seven-year, $2.4 billion project, are now open, with 21 miles of rebuilt highway and new express lanes between Orange and Seminole counties. It is the largest road project in state history. Highlights of the project: Reconstruction of I-4 lanes and adding four new tolled I-4 Express lanes – two in each direction; Reconstruction of 15 major interchanges; Replacement of 74 bridges, widening of 13 bridges, and adding 53 new bridges. The I-4 Express lanes, the centerpiece of the project, are now open on the interstate’s center lanes and separated by concrete barriers....

If you think risking public safety for political gain is a bridge too far, even for a Democrat politician, you need look no further than Pittsburgh’s City Democrat Councilman Ricky Burgess to dispel any notion of it. It’s only been less than a month since the Fern Hollow Bridge in Pittsburgh’s East End neighborhood Jan. 28 collapse, coincidently coinciding with Biden’s already scheduled trip to the city to tout his infrastructure plan. For Joe Biden, and a beleaguered White House staff, waking up to news of bridge’s falling must’ve seemed like a providential gift for an administration desperate for a...