The bridge regulations are not that hard to comply with, an outside Bridge engineering firm can be your bridge engineer and do all the proper calculations for the bridge capacity and most of the regulation is common sense. You do not want a bridge to fail under the train and these regulations came about because as an industry many railroads did not take proper care of the bridges. The real issue was somew states also got it not the act on bridges and hired bridge inspection folks who had no clue about railroad bridges. they were Hiway DOT guys and a rail bridge wood or steel is much different than a highway bridge.Your trackinspection forces can be trained to look at bridges for defects or wear and tear before it becomes and issue that leads to an out of service condition if you let it get that far that your bad.
Much bridge work can be done in house with training for your track forces. When I first got on the CCT one of the main things we did on the line to Lodi was rebuild the track and then tackle the bridges worst one 1st until all were rebuilt or repaired they had been neglected for years. You must be always be proactive on bridges and have a 1 year 2year and 3 year plan for a bridge which the yearly inspections by the bridge engineer will validate with the inspection report. The only reason a railroad would go out of business is if the revenue will not support the safe operation over the bridges, Also remember the weight of the rail cars has increased to the Standard now of 286000lbs on 4 axles and you need a good bridge to handle these cars. Bridge safety is part of overall safety for your employees and rather communities you operate through. If you cannot operate a safe railroad then you do not need to be in the railroad business. The few bad eggs out there were the cause of this regulation along with dumb politicians and NIMBY's. Y'all have a great and safe holiday weekend