Ellen Tupman asked us, via Twitter (we’ve edited slightly for readability), “Is CalTrans inspecting the Bay Bridge after (Jan 7th’s) quake? I know it was small but the Bay Bridge is fragile!”
So we started to wonder: What does Caltrans do post-quake for the Bay Bridge? Do they have an inspection protocol, a la BART? What about that iffy new stretch?
A spokesperson for the California Department of Transportation told me in an email that, as one would hope, their “structural maintenance crews always review the structures immediately after a significant event to confirm the integrity of every freeway bridge in the affected area.”
As for the new East Span of the Bay Bridge? “[When] we have structures that are under construction the project teams handle the inspection following an earthquake and determine if there is any damage,” Bart Ney, Public Transportation Officer for CalTrans, wrote to me. “On the Caltrans side of things this [is] managed by our resident engineers and the contractor’s project managers.”
According to Ney, no damage was done to the bridge due to the recent quakes.
Think of “Ask the Appeal” as your own personal genie: no Bay-related question is too big or too small. Whether you’re concerned with a municipal question, a consumer advocacy issue or simply with consuming alcohol, email us your questions at ask@sfappeal.com. We’ll either do the dirty work and talk to the folks in charge, contact an expert in the field, or – if your question is particularly intriguing or juicy – develop it into a full-blown investigative article.
