Bay Bridge Tower Sections Going Up; Drivers Warned
SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) - Caltrans once again issued a reminder to drivers Monday morning to keep their eyes on the road, and not on the spectacular construction project underway at the Bay Bridge S-curve.
KCBS' Holly Quan Reports:
The agency marked a milestone as it began hoisting sections of the 525 ft., self-anchored suspension span tower into place.
It's not that Caltrans isn't proud of the work; the concern simply was that the eye-catching work was taking place in an already dicey area of the bridge.
The S-curve was the scene of a fatal car accident a little over one year ago. Speed was determined to have been a factor in that crash.
Conceivably, the work was visible to westbound drivers as they approached the S-curve. Eastbound drivers in the far left lane stood a chance of seeing the work, as well.
"This is a four-day operation," explained Caltrans spokesman Bart Ney. "The first part of it takes about sixteen hours. And we started positioning the bars to lift this piece of the new tower at 5 o'clock this morning."
Work would also involve the lifting of sections, weighing 617 tons, 300 ft. in the air as the tower was being assembled. Crews were schedule to work around the clock in 12 hour shifts.
Once this phase was completed, partially completed "legs" would stick up more than 10 stories above the deck of the bridge.
It would be a remarkable visual change for Bay Bridge "regulars."
"Most of this work has been down beneath the deck, kind of on the water level," said Ney.
In all, four tower sections were to be installed. Monday marked work on the second section. The third section was expected to arrive in December, from a manufacturing plant in China.
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