The entire House Democratic Caucus extends its sympathy and prayers to the families of those who died or were injured in this week's bridge collapse in Minnesota.

As Gov. Edward G. Rendell said Thursday, there is no way to prejudge when a tragedy like that will occur, but we certainly can be vigilant in our duty to ensure that our roads and bridges are properly inspected and maintained. That is why last month's transportation funding plan is so crucial to the Commonwealth's future.

Pennsylvania has 25,000 state-owned bridges and nearly 6,000 of them are considered structurally deficient. While it would take $8 billion to repair them all at one time, the recent transportation plan that was moved to the forefront of budget negotiations by the House Democratic Caucus is a good start toward completing those repairs.

To see a list of bridges and roads needing repair throughout the state, click here. click here.

You can listen to comments about the plan by clicking here.