The new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge was expected to open earlier than expected after a ribbon-cutting ceremony yesterday afternoon.
SAN FRANCISCO — The new, $6.4 billion eastern span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge is being praised as a dramatic safety upgrade over its predecessor and a beautiful example of public art at its inaugural ceremony.
There was no public celebration with tens of thousands of pedestrians and fireworks at Monday’s inaugural. Instead, after years of delays and cost overruns, the opening of one of the state’s most expensive public works projects was marked with a relatively low-key event.
State, federal and local elected officials were among those who spoke. The event also included a poem about the bridge by California’s poet laureate, Juan Felipe Herrera.
“People are tired, but everyone’s very excited,” bridge spokesman Andrew Gordon said Monday morning. “It’s kind of this last lap so to speak, the last leg of this marathon. We are all looking forward to getting to the finish line.”
The invitation-only inauguration was scheduled for 3 p.m., with a formal chain cutting ceremony 90 minutes later.
Government officials, labor leaders, survivors of the 1989 earthquake that collapsed two 50-foot sections of the old eastern span and people who were alive when the Bay Bridge first opened in 1936 were expected to attend. Gov. Jerry Brown, who was closely involved in planning the bridge when he was mayor of Oakland, did not attend.
The new span and the rest of the bridge will not immediately be opened to traffic. It closed on Wednesday night so crews could do final work, and they were still striping, putting up signs and putting down roadway markers Monday, Gordon said. Some barrier railing also needed to be put up.
The bridge is scheduled to open to traffic by 5 a.m. Tuesday, though it could open earlier. Gordon said a decision will be made Monday afternoon and could be announced at the ceremony.
The new section of bridge, designed to make the span safe during earthquakes, has been under construction for almost a decade and follows years of political bickering, engineering challenges and cost overruns. It replaced a structure that was damaged during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.
In March, more than two dozen rods used to anchor the roadway to important earthquake safety structures cracked after they were tightened. The discovery threatened to delay the bridge’s opening by months.
The bridge will open with a temporary fix for the broken rods while the permanent repair, expected to be completed in December, is being installed.
Transportation officials approved the temporary fix last month and voted to open the bridge as originally planned around the Labor Day weekend.
But Gordon said on Monday that there was not enough time for a public celebration.
Plans for such a celebration originally called for a bridge walk with more than 100,000 people, fireworks, a half marathon and a concert.
Please purchase a Premium Subscription to continue reading.
To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account.
We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription.
A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means you’re helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much!
Only subscribers can view and post comments on articles.
Already a subscriber? Login Here
Join us to watch the last California Governor's Debate on Thursday, May 14 at Round Table Pi… Read moreCalifornia Governor's Debate Watch
San Mateo Bonsai Club - Bonsai Show Read moreSan Mateo Bonsai Club - Bonsai Show
Join New York Times bestselling author Caroline Paul for a lively discussion of her book Tou… Read moreBook Club with Author Caroline Paul
Doug North Central said:
Doug North Central said:
Doug North Central said:
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
(0) comments
Welcome to the discussion.
Log In
Keep the discussion civilized. Absolutely NO personal attacks or insults directed toward writers, nor others who make comments.
Keep it clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language.
Don't threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated.
Be truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything.
Be proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts.
PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK.
Anyone violating these rules will be issued a warning. After the warning, comment privileges can be revoked.