12:01 PM (BCN): The Bay Bridge reopened to cars this morning after a repair job performed over the last six days passed a series of rigorous tests, California Department of Transportation spokesman Bart Ney said.
The heavily used span had been closed in both directions since Tuesday evening, when a 5,000-pound steel assembly crashed onto the upper deck.
Two tie rods and a crossbar fell into traffic, damaging three cars. The rods and crossbar had been installed to take pressure off a cracked eyebar that was spotted during construction over the Labor Day weekend.
Ney said crews worked overnight to fine-tune the repairs in a way that avoids “metal rubbing on metal.”
The work “went very well and was efficient,” Ney said.
The repair work then underwent a stress test that consisted of running trucks on the lower deck of the bridge to check vibration levels. Ney said only minor vibrations occurred and that the repair work “passed the test with flying colors.”
In addition, Ney said, inspectors manually shook new steel rods that had been put in place.
Caltrans attributed last week’s failure to the inability of the tie rods to withstand strong vibrations caused in part by heavy winds last week.
Ney said the inspections were performed both by Caltrans and by outside experts, including Federal Highway Administration officials and two college engineering professors.
Ney said the repair work failed an initial stress test conducted Saturday night.
“It was not acceptable because the repair couldn’t keep the alignment in place and steel was rubbing steel,” Ney said.
Caltrans then redesigned its repair to improve it, he said.
Ney said Caltrans will inspect the repaired section daily during off-peak hours to see how it is performing.
One lane of traffic will be closed during the inspections, he said.
The California Highway Patrol escorted the first groups of cars across the reopened span at about 9 a.m.
9:03 AM (BCN): The California Department of Transportation reopened the Bay Bridge this morning, nearly one week after the bridge was shut down when a repair failed and sent debris falling onto the upper deck.
The first cars were allowed back onto the bridge at about 8:50 a.m.
At a news conference this morning, Caltrans spokeman Bart Ney offered thanks to Bay Area drivers for bearing with the closure.
“Thank you for your patience,” Ney said. “I know it’s been difficult … we are happy to be returning the Bay Bridge to public service this morning.”
The closure stretched through three full weekdays and this morning’s commute, and complicated Halloween plans for many on both sides of the Bay.
BART saw ridership records shattered as commuters flocked to public transit to get to work.
The failure occurred Tuesday evening when two tie rods and a crossbar tumbled onto the upper deck of the eastern span, damaging three vehicles. The rods and crossbar had been installed to take pressure off a cracked eyebar that was spotted during construction over the Labor Day weekend.
Caltrans attributed the failure to the inability of the rods to withstand strong vibrations caused in part by heavy winds last week.
Ney said this morning that crews have been testing new rods that were installed to ensure that vibrations won’t be a problem. The repair passed the tests and Caltrans decided to reopen the bridge today.
“We’re ready to open,” he said.
Caltrans will perform regular inspections by closing lanes during off-peak hours to examine the entire system, Ney said.
The California Highway Patrol planned to escort the first groups of cars across the reopened span.
8:54 AM: Don’t know what else to say — cars are slowly making their way onto the Bridge, Caltrans has made the official announcement. Good luck, everybody!
8:20 AM: Caltrans spokesperson Bart Ney says all stress tests have been passed, and the Bridge will reopen between 8:45 and 9 this morning. CHP will do a “phased opening” and will slowly allow drivers onto the Bridge.
8:08 AM: All the construction equipment has been removed from Bridge, and CHP is poised on both ends to pace traffic. Which poses an interesting question — do you want to be one of the first folks back on the Bridge?
8:02 AM: CHP is doing “a final sweep,” they say, and we’re all waiting for an expected Caltrans press conference to announce the Bridge reopening.
Elsewhere: Bay Bridge to reopen later today Chron, Bay Bridge Expected To Be Open Monday CBS5, Bay Bridge may reopen late Monday morning ABC7
11/2 6:06 AM (BCN): The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge will likely open later this morning or early this afternoon after final inspections are completed, a California Department of Transportation spokesman announced today.
“Things are looking really good,” spokesman Bart Ney said. “We’ve progressed a great deal overnight.”
Caltrans crew members, material providers and inspectors have been working for nearly a week to repair a section where two rods and a crossbar fell onto the upper deck of the eastern span of the bridge Tuesday evening.
Ney said a break-through came when workers were able to get the steel into alignment early this morning, which led to successful stress tests.
Large trucks are being put in position to do final stress tests, and visual inspections have begun, Ney said.
If all goes well, there will be a final clean-up and California Highway Patrol inspection leading up to the bridge opening later today.
Ney said much of the heavy construction equipment has already been cleared, and some large contractor vehicles are being used for the stress tests. Inspectors are watching for vibrations in the repair work, and so far none have been detected.
Ney warned that although things look good, final inspections will dictate when the bridge re-opens.
“Safety is our priority,” Ney said. “Clearly we have taken our time with implementing this. All along had great participation with third party reviews.”
He said Caltrans will likely do daily inspections once the bridge reopens by closing lanes during off-peak hours to examine the entire system.
11/1 5:44 PM (BCN): The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge will likely not be reopened in time for the Monday morning commute, a California Department of Transportation spokesman said today.
Caltrans crew members, material providers and inspectors have been working for nearly a week to repair a section where two rods and a crossbar fell onto the upper deck of the eastern span of the bridge Tuesday evening.
At a news conference this evening, Caltrans spokesman Bart Ney said crews were still working on the repairs and that stress tests will be performed on the bridge later tonight.
Until they know the results of those tests, Ney said authorities cannot predict when the bridge will reopen.
“I know that’s frustrating for motorists, but we don’t want to make a false prediction, and we want to put safety first,” he said.
Ney said crews performed stress tests Saturday, and that “engineers didn’t get what they were looking for.”
The tests showed that there was still metal-on-metal fatigue between pieces of the new repair structure, which is replacing repairs of a cracked eyebar discovered over Labor Day weekend.
The metal-on-metal fatigue, apparently caused by high winds on the bridge, caused the steel crossbar and two steel rods that were part of the original repairs to fall onto the bridge Tuesday evening.
The crossbeam and rods crashed on the cantilever section of the bridge near Yerba Buena Island and damaged three vehicles, but no one was seriously hurt.
Crews took the night off beginning late Saturday after working 24 hours a day since the bridge closed, Ney said.
“They’ve been hard at it for four days,” Ney said. “We thought it was a good time to take a rest.”
He said they resumed work at 7 a.m. today, and do not have a break planned tonight.
BART has been running trains overnight for the past two days but will take their trains out of service tonight to inspect and prepare them for the Monday rush hour.
