ODOT Awarded $2.5 Million for Bridge Paint Failures

A common pleas court jury has awarded the Ohio Department of Transportation $2.5 million for bridge paint failures that occurred along State Route 7 after eight bridges were painted in 1999. ODOT claimed in their suit that the paint system failure will require at least two of the bridges to be stripped and repainted and others to be re-touched. An ODOT bridge inspector was previously convicted in Federal court of making false and fictitious statements regarding the quality of this bridge painting project. He also admitted to accepting an improper cash payment of $1,000 from the contractor. The contractor claimed that the inspector never accepted anything more than free lunches.

As of May 2007, 14 individuals and four companies have been convicted in a federal investigation of contract and grant fraud in the ODOT bridge painting inspection program. More than 30 other cases alleging faulty bridge painting are now pending in the courts for the Eastern District of Ohio.