San Francisco Bay Bridge Re-Opening Delayed For A Day

San Francisco, CA (AHN) – Workers will have to find alternate ways to travel as they begin their first post-Labor Day commute because San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge will remain closed for another day on Tuesday. A crack on the East Span of the bridge needs repair.

In a late Monday briefing, California Department of Transportation Director Randell Iwasaki said all construction associated with the Labor Day weekend seismic retrofitting project will be completed as scheduled by Tuesday at 5:00 am but added that a crack on the East Span of the bridge needs repair that will take another day. He moved the reopening date of the bridge to Wednesday at 5:00 am.

The 4.5-mile Bay Bridge was closed late Thursday for the retrofitting, which involved replacing a 300-foot portion east of the Yerba Buena Island Tunnel. A half-mile, double-deck section was in place as a temporary detour for traffic.

An inspection of the East Span before the construction had revealed a crack that was not discovered when the bridge was last inspected two years ago. CalTrans said the crack “has not posed a threat to drivers” and that “the best people are working 24 hours to get this repair done as quickly as possible.”

“This should not overshadow the work [has been] done,” Iwasaki said. “The workers have toiled over the last two years with planning, designing, getting the materials ready, doing all the prep work for this great day… to meet that target.”

The Bay Area Rapid Transit is running expanded service with longer trains to accommodate the increased ridership. Other public transit operators are also offering expanded services; officials have set up a website at 511.org to help commuters plan ahead.

About 270,000 vehicles pass the Bay Bridge on a daily basis. The CalTrans has previously held major repairs of the 73-year-old bridge during the Labor Day weekend to take advantage of the light traffic, but the agency said this year’s repair “is more susceptible to weather” because it will be done 150 feet above the Yerba Buena Island Tunnel.