§ 230. Definitions. As used in this article the following terms shall have the following meanings:

1. "Bridge" means a structure including supports erected over a depression or an obstruction such as water, highway, or railway, having a track or passageway for carrying traffic or other moving loads and having an opening measured along the center of the track or roadway of more than twenty feet between under croppings of abutments or spring lines or arches, or extreme ends of openings for multiple boxes and may include multiple pipes where the clear distance between openings is less than half of the smaller contiguous opening. The term bridge, as defined in this section, shall also include the approaches.

2. "Culvert" means a structure whether of single or multiple span construction within an interior width of twenty feet or less when measurement is made horizontally along the center line of roadway from face to face of abutments or sidewalls immediately below the copings or fillets; or, if there are no copings or fillets at points six inches below the bridge seats or immediately under the top slab in the case of frame structures. In the case of arches, the span shall be measured from spring line to spring line. All measurements shall include the widths of intervening piers or division walls as well as the width of copings or fillets. The term culvert, as defined in this section, shall also include the approaches.

3. "Publicly-owned, operated or maintained" means a bridge that is owned, operated or maintained by any department, board, bureau, commission or agency of the state or its political subdivisions, public benefit corporation or by any public authority including the port authority of New York and New Jersey.

4. "Public entity" means any department, board, bureau, commission or agency of the state or its political subdivisions, public benefit corporation or any public authority including the port authority of New York and New Jersey.

5. "Substantial structural alteration" means any work that modifies the load capacity, loan distribution or load paths or structural behavior of the bridge.

6. "Railroad bridge" means a structure including supports erected over a depression or an obstruction such as water, highway, or railway, having a track or tracks for carrying freight or passengers or other moving loads and having an opening measured along the center of the track or roadway of more than twenty feet between under croppings of abutments or spring lines or arches, or extreme ends of openings for multiple boxes and may include multiple pipes where the clear distance between openings is less than half of the smaller contiguous opening whether privately or publicly owned. The term railroad bridge, as defined in this section, shall also include the approaches.

7. "Railroad" means a private or public railroad operating in the state of New York carrying either freight, passengers or freight and passengers including, but not limited to, those operated by the metropolitan transportation authority and its subsidiaries, the Long Island Rail Road, the metro-north railroad, the Staten Island rapid transit operating authority, the New York city transit authority or any other public authority or local government and shall include tourist excursion operations and railrides on standard gauge tracks.