Man, sit down 'cause I got the scoop! Ciprian Ciucu, our mayor, showed up at the Basarab Bridge site to announce work is starting - as if we haven't been waiting 15 years since it was opened. For real, bro, this bridge is like my 2008 BMW: looks good, but you never did the final inspection. And now, suddenly, we're hit with traffic restrictions and the tram's already stopped. Listen up: from June 29, car traffic closes alternately on lanes, meaning one lane's under construction, the other you're spinning like a cat in a calendar. Ciucu says it's for site organization, but I'm not buying it - seems like they're rushing now, in summer when everyone wants to leave the city.
Now, the saddest part: the bridge is 15 years old, but the final inspection was NEVER done. I mean, how's that possible? We drove on it like suckers, and they didn't sign the papers? Mioara, my wife, says that's how it is with the state: you build something, then forget about it until it breaks. And now, to get the inspection, they're doing 10 months of work - drainage ditches, railings, asphalt, lighting. They say they won't touch the structure, but just wait till they cut into the bridge and we find it in the Dâmbovița River. I'm joking, but not really.
Ciucu scheduled the work right during the kids' vacation, to avoid affecting daily traffic. Good for him, at least he thought about school. But what about us, with BMW loans and Mioara waiting for her Lidl salary? Every morning, we're stuck at the traffic light on Basarab Bridge, and now we'll be spinning on one lane like horse races. And it's not the only construction site: they're also working on the heating networks and tram lines, on Henri Coandă and Națiunile Unite. As if the heating crisis last winter wasn't enough, now they're digging again.
Anyway, the projects in the central area are still in the urban documentation phase - meaning papers, papers, for another two years. Until then, I pray the bridge doesn't fall on me when I drive by. Who pays? Us, out of pocket, just like we paid for the inspection they didn't do for 15 years. That's Romania: you pay for something, then pay again to see if it's okay.
