November 5, 2009

More repairs needed for San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge

SAN FRANCISCO

The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge reopened this week, but transportation engineers said their work may not be finished.

The heavily used span was closed Oct. 27 after two rods and a metal crossbar came crashing down on the roadway during evening rush hour.

Engineers worked through the weekend to finish repairs and now plan daily safety inspections. They warned the bridge may have to be closed again to complete a more permanent fix.

“We’ve taken care of what we believe are the big issues that led to this failure,” said Rick Land, chief engineer for the state department of transportation.

Still, officials will be looking for a “better, long-term strategy” that won’t require daily monitoring, he said.

Land and other transportation officials said the repairs were designed to withstand the high winds that caused a previous fix to fail. New parts have been reinforced to control vibrations and prevent friction, he said.

The parts that failed had been installed over the Labour Day weekend to repair a crack and were expected to last until a new bridge opened in 2013.

Crews working to reopen the bridge over the weekend had to battle windy conditions.

A test Saturday showed the newly installed rods were rubbing against metal, which could cause them to fail. The parts had to be reworked Sunday.

-Associated Press

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