6. Will the Kerch Bridge be destroyed, such that no vehicle can pass over in 2023?
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resolved Jan 1
Resolved
NO

As long as any vehicle (except, like, airplanes) can pass over the bridge, it does not count as destroyed. If the bridge is destroyed but successfully repaired before 1/1/24 so that vehicles can cross it again, it does not count as destroyed.

This is question #6 in the Astral Codex Ten 2023 Prediction Contest. The contest rules and full list of questions are available here. Market will resolve according to Scott Alexander’s judgment, as given through future posts on Astral Codex Ten.

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bought Ṁ100 of NO

@BTE yeah, that part is clear, i safely assume it will be damaged another multiple times this year, however, a complete destruction of both the road bridge and the rail bridge (to an extent that it can't be fixed by 1/1/24) is the hard to believe part.

this market only requires the bridge to be out for 2 days:

https://manifold.markets/Aurelius/will-the-kerch-strait-bridge-bridge

predicted NO

@nickten yeah, still my view, but this is a question where I won't be upset if I lose $2100M. Rail bridge is much higher and would be hard to get with naval drones (or just about anything)

predicted NO

Looks like there's significant damage to the bridge. I doubt it's caused by a missile. The question is if Ukraine can continue strikes against the 2 other lanes, and keep it up till the end of the year. So certainly a positive update, but not a huge one

predicted NO

@ElliotDavies rumor it was a pair of drone boats

bought Ṁ100 of NO

Google says it is just a 4 hour delay. Buy NO!

bought Ṁ15 of YES

Ukraine went for it this morning and their missile was intercepted. But this is clearly in range now.

predicted YES

Something happening there right now.

predicted YES

Looks like the Russians practicing for an evacuation under duress.

predicted YES

An I missing something with the arbitrage opportunity here, Do people just give a very strong probability to it being repaired or it it something else?

https://manifold.markets/Aurelius/will-the-kerch-strait-bridge-bridge

predicted NO

@CameronHolmes it has happened once already during the war, right?

I guess damaging something to the point of inoperability is much easier than destroying it for good, unless you have control over the area.

bought Ṁ25 of YES

@CameronHolmes I think I personally caused most of the recent movement in that other market, and I did so while not being aware of this one. But yes, I do put a significant probability on it being repaired if it is put out of order (repaired enough for some vehicles to be able to cross).

Also, even if the bridge is put permanently out of order, the other market will resolve faster than this one. So this market gives lower "interest payments" (insofar as the market resolves in my favor that is).

predicted YES

Also, it sometimes plays into my thinking that if I move a market erratically, then maybe this can work as "bait" for more people to join in, or for existing traders to pay attention to it again (so that the market gets more liquidity) 🙃 I don't have a cogent strategy relating to that, but it does play into my thinking sometimes.

predicted YES

@Fion my understanding is that the previous damage was insufficient to satisfy that market as it was still partly navigable? (I could be wrong on that though)

I agree with your point generally though.

bought Ṁ38 of YES

my understanding is that the previous damage was insufficient to satisfy that market as it was still partly navigable?

That's correct, I think (for either market).

The way I understand it (I'm not totally sure):

- The bridge was hit in early October
- All traffic of any vehicle (car or train) was stopped for some hours, but some car traffic resumed later that same day.
- Two-way car-traffic was restored early December.
- Car-traffick was no longer significantly affected in late February (this year).
- Rail-traffick was restored in early May (this year).

predicted YES

If Ukraine moves to take Crimea this has to happen for them to succeed.

bought Ṁ100 of NO

@BTE The fighting is unlikely to happen in Crimea this year. The war is going to be longer than people on Manifold seem to imagine.

predicted YES

@42irrationalist Spring is here, it is prime time for them to strike.

predicted NO

@Thunderstar The counteroffensive will start in the coming weeks, but the fighting in Crimea is unlikely to happen.

This war is slow and gruesome.

predicted YES

I don't know why this is so low. According to the new aid package going to Ukraine as well as a thread about them (https://mobile.twitter.com/TrentTelenko/status/1628197190320488455) and their capabilities, it seems pretty likely as this is a high target for Ukraine. As for the repairs, this bridge was built with European technology and I don't see a possibility of it being repaired successfully by Russians anytime soon (Pre cast concrete: https://mobile.twitter.com/TrentTelenko/status/1512795416064106498).

predicted NO

@Thunderstar The powered JDAM is maybe barely in range, but as mentioned below, a 500lb bomb isn't going to destroy the Kerch bridge.

predicted YES

@AlQuinn enough of then will. These are precision seeking bombs, not just randomly placed. Destroying this bridge and it's transportation capabilities is crucial for Ukraine winning the war.

predicted NO

@Thunderstar What's your % chance on this question?

predicted NO

@Thunderstar lol, okay, so almost 100 500lb JDAMs will equal one truck bomb. Maybe Ukraine manages to successfully launch 100 JDAMs and strike the bridge, surgically severing it, but on the other hand, this isn't a Tom Cruise movie.

predicted YES

@AlQuinn Ukrainians can launch other types of bombs from the Himar as well. Ukraine is also working on suicide drones as well (https://mobile.twitter.com/EuromaidanPress/status/1581975400615329793). I'm being realistic here.

predicted YES

@ElliotDavies I haven't fully decided yet but definitely above 50%.

predicted NO

@Thunderstar I would stay off the twitter if I were you; rots the brain. But 75kg suicide drones aren't going to collapse a bridge. But if you think so, why not buy more YES -- maybe to 40+%?

predicted YES

@AlQuinn lack of funds, simple as 😂. A lot of the articles I've read are just rehashing from Twitter anyways.

predicted NO

@Thunderstar Yes, the media is braindead

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