Most people cross a bridge without giving it a second thought. For Austin and Katelyn, they say every bridge tells a story.
This summer, the two civil engineering students traded college classrooms for hard hats and safety vests. Instead of solving problems from a textbook, they spent their summer helping inspect bridges. We have more than 3,400 bridges and overpasses we maintain across Washington.
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| Austin stands on the shoulder of US 12 near Morton to measure the depth of water and the conditions of Lake Creek below. This is an important part of bridge inspections, especially for bridges that cross rivers or other waterways. |
They climbed under bridges, tested aging bridge decks and noted potential repairs. This hands-on experience gave them a look at the work that keeps our transportation system safe and operational. Traveling across the state and being mentored by Washington’s top bridge engineers – also a bonus.
Learning by doing
Austin, a civil engineering student at Saint Martin's University in Lacey, is spending his second summer with us. Austin is a United States Army veteran and said public service is important to him.
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| Austin in his United States Army uniform during an airborne operations training in 2019. |
"I've always wanted to do work that serves people," Austin said.
His internship focused largely on bridge inspections. Working alongside experienced bridge engineers, he helped document bridge conditions. He learned to look for signs of wear and tear and how inspections help prioritize repairs.
One of his favorite discoveries?
"By far the coolest part was learning about Washington’s timber bridges," Austin said. "We don't really study those in school because they're an older bridge design."
Washington is home to hundreds of older bridges. Many of them have safely served travelers for decades due to regular inspections, maintenance and preservation work. In fact, we maintain 342 bridges* that are more than 80 years old, showing how ongoing care can extend a bridge's service life. Of those, 57 bridges are timber structures and over 80 years old.
Looking beyond the roadway
Katelyn is a Washington State University civil engineering student. She spent much of her summer seeing bridges from a perspective most travelers never experience.
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| Katelyn stands inside the bucket of an under-bridge inspection truck along State Route 25 over the Columbia River in Northport. This summer, she helped perform chloride testing on bridge decks. She also helped inspect bridge components and examined structures from below. The testing helps find where salt may be causing corrosion inside the concrete before larger problems develop. |
"My friends didn't realize we inspect the belly of a bridge," Katelyn said. "Most people only think about the roadway they drive on. There's an entire structure underneath that has to be inspected piece by piece."
Finding issues early allows us to schedule maintenance before damage becomes more extensive. This helps us extend a bridge's lifespan. It also reduces future costs and minimizes disruptions for travelers. This work coincides with the day-to-day work by our maintenance crews.
Every bridge is different
One lesson both interns quickly learned is that no two bridges are the same. Bridge engineers inspect each structure on a regular schedule. Typically, every two years, they check its condition and identify potential repairs.
Some inspections happen from under-bridge inspection trucks. These special trucks allow engineers to reach areas hidden from drivers above. Others need specialty underwater dive teams to inspect bridge foundations. Our movable bridges need mechanical and electrical expert inspectors to do their jobs.
Austin said riding in an under-bridge inspection truck while examining bridges was one of the highlights of his summer.
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| Underneath the SR 509 bridge near Dash Point State Park. Austin helped inspect several components of the bridge with our bridge preservation team. |
"It gives you a completely different perspective when you are in a UBIT below the deck," he said.
The work also showed them that bridge repairs rarely come with an off-the-shelf solution. Many repairs need engineers to design custom fixes because every bridge has its own history, design and challenges.
"People think bridges are all the same," Katelyn said. "They're not. Every bridge requires its own solution. That's what makes this work exciting."
Building tomorrow's workforce
The internship also offered something unexpected: seeing women in engineering leadership roles on our Bridges and Structures Team.
"It was inspiring to see women leading projects and solving complex engineering problems," Katelyn said.
Austin and Katelyn finished their internships on Thursday, August 20 and will now return to college this fall. Both say the experience confirmed they chose the right career path. They hope to someday work for the state of Washington in some capacity.
Their summer wasn't just about inspecting bridges. It was about learning how engineering improves people's everyday lives. Bridges are one component of our state’s complex and evolving transportation system. They keep families connected, support local communities and help millions of people get to work or the grocery store each day. For these interns, every inspection was another step toward becoming the next generation of engineers. We look forward to this next generation, who will design, inspect and preserve Washington's bridges for decades to come.
Learn more about our internship opportunities. And check out our careers in engineering, maintenance and transportation planning.
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*Based on June 2025 bridge data.
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