Historic Bridges: Bridging the Gap between Safety Concerns and HistoricPreservation

摘要

This report initially describes tha background of the rise of bridges aspreservation targets and the legislation supporting preservation efforts. The two laws most important in the preservation of historic bridges are the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) and the Department of Transportation ACT (DOT Act), both introduced in 1966. NHPA Section 106 imposes demanding procedural requirements on highway departments pursuing projects within the NHPA's scope. The provision commonly known as Sectioin 4(f) of the DOT Act imposes substantive restrictions, preventing federal approval for projects that use historic properties unless it has been demonstrated that there is no feasible and prudent alternative to the use and that harm to the historic properties is being minimized. (Copyright (c) 1996, Commonwealth of Virginia.)