BATON ROUGE, La. – Following a damning report that flagged eight Louisiana bridges as at risk of collapse, the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (LADOTD) has partnered with the Office of Motor Vehicles to introduce a “Bridge Collapse Simulator” into all state driver’s education programs.
“We felt it was important to prepare young drivers for the infrastructure they’ll actually be using,” said one instructor, calmly securing a 16-year-old student into a motion seat surrounded by shaking walls and falling foam beams.
The high-tech simulator places students in realistic scenarios like “Accelerate When You Feel the Bridge Buckle,” “How to Exit a Vehicle Mid-Air,” and “Calm a Screaming Passenger During Freefall.” A bonus level, “Write Your Own Obituary While Trapped in a Sinking Vehicle,” will also be available.
In a related measure, all Louisiana drivers will now be required to sign a standard hold harmless agreement before crossing any flagged bridges, confirming they understand the risks of structural failure, sudden water entry, and that the bridge “doing its best” does not guarantee survival.
Each student will receive a certificate of completion, a safety whistle, and their own state-issued flotation device upon successfully completing the program.
To support public safety efforts, DOTD has also released a new mobile app called PlungeTrack™, which allows drivers’ loved ones to follow their vehicle’s descent in real time should a bridge give way. The app features live plunge mapping, optional last words logging, and a “notify next of kin” button for added peace of mind.
