DENVER -- Drivers are reminded that a bridge thousands of them drive over everyday is "structurally deficient."

The Laborers' International Union of North America -- also known as LiUNA-- has paid for a billboard on eastbound Sixth Avenue at Bryant Street, approaching Interstate 25.

The billboard states: "Bridge You're On Is Structurally Deficient." It then states: "Ask Senators (Michael) Bennet and (Mark) Udall To Help Build America So America Works."

"This is just one of many bridges that are starting to deteriorate," said LiUNA spokesman Larry Gray. "The concrete's starting to get exposed, the concrete is starting to fall off … this is not going to get any better, it's going to start deteriorating a lot more."

According to the Colorado Department of Transportation, a "structurally deficient" designation isn't the worst classification for bridges.

"Structurally deficient is a misleading term, it doesn't necessarily mean it's in the worst condition or that it's unsafe," said CDOT spokeswoman Stacey Stegman. "We rate bridges on a scale of zero to 100, with zero being the worst. U.S. Highway 6 over Bryant Street is definitely not in good condition, it's a poorly rated bridge. It is structurally deficient, but it's still rated in the 40s, so it's not among the worst of the worst."

LiUNA put the billboard up to get drivers to call their Senators and encourage them to approve more funding for transportation. 7NEWS asked LiUNA if the intent was to fix bad bridges or to create union jobs.

"Well this is about getting jobs and about getting the money," said Gray. "If we were walking through here and one of these chunks of concrete fell on our head right here, we would probably get very hurt. Why should we have to wait for something to happen before we act on this?"

7NEWS looked at the December 2009 inspection report for the Sixth Avenue bridge over Bryant Street. Inspectors noted "hairline" cracks and "moderate" deterioration with "exposed rebar."

The bridge was rated 44.3, making it the 28th worst bridge in Colorado. It was deemed "structurally deficient," but still capable of handling the traffic it carries. That traffic is another reason the LiUNA billboard was put where it was, even though the bridge isn't the state's worst.

"There's a lot more traffic, it's a little bit more visible on this particular bridge," said Gray. "I'm sure that there's other bridges right now around Colorado that have more priority than this."

"If we thought a bridge was unsafe, we'd close it," said Stegman. "If we thought that any of these bridges were unsafe, you would start to see us post restrictions for heavy vehicles and then ultimately close a bridge to traffic."

CDOT has twice as much funding for bridge repair this year because of the FASTER legislation that increased vehicle registration fees. Even if more money came from Congress, it wouldn't necessarily go to the Sixth Avenue bridge over Bryant Street because it's 28th on the list. I-25 over Santa Fe Boulevard is number two on the list. That section of I-25 will actually see emergency concrete repairs next weekend, requiring lane closures overnight.