Traffic On Golden Gate Bridge At A Crawl During Bay Bridge Closure
Editors' note: The Bay Bridge closure could end earlier or later than scheduled. Text ALERT to KCBS (45227) and we'll text you when it will reopen.
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS SF) -- Commuters headed to San Francisco from the East Bay this Presidents Day weekend were warned they would not be able to travel on the Bay Bridge from Friday evening through Tuesday morning.
The bridge's upper deck will be closed until 5 a.m. Tuesday, although weather could delay the deck's reopening.
Eastbound traffic, carried on the lower deck, and vehicle travel between Treasure Island and San Francisco are unaffected by the closure.
Traffic slowed to a crawl on the Golden Gate Bridge Saturday evening, according to bridge officials.
The bridge was seeing heavy evening traffic all day Saturday and anticipates approximately a 50 percent increase in traffic levels this holiday weekend, spokeswoman Mary Currie said Saturday.
"Traffic is at a crawl now," Currie said. "It is moving but it's moving pretty slowly."
The Golden Gate Bridge was crossed by 39,799 southbound vehicles on Saturday, Feb. 19, 2011, and 49,889 on Saturday, Feb. 13, 2010, according to data from the Golden Gate Bridge District.
The Bay Bridge's westbound upper deck closed Friday night for work including the construction of a detour near the toll plaza, lane striping and the placement of a guide rail, according to Caltrans officials.
The detour will shift westbound traffic to the south of its existing path. It will make room for construction crews to demolish sections of the existing roadway to make way for a new inclined section for the new east span of the bridge.
Alternatives for crossing the Bay include taking BART, which will run overnight service at 14 stations during the closure, hopping a ferry from the East Bay or Vallejo, or taking the Richmond-San Rafael, San Mateo-Hayward or Dumbarton bridges.
AC Transit, which will not operate over the bridge during the closure, will provide regular service in the East Bay by connecting to and from the West Oakland BART station.
More information can be found at bart.gov, actransit.org, eastbayferry.com and baylinkferry.com.
During the closure, motorists are recommended to check the Bay Bridge website -- baybridgeinfo.org -- for updates and to visit511.org or call 511 for real-time traffic conditions and information on detours and public transit.
KCBS' Mark Seelig Reports:
(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco and Bay City News Service. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
