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Labor Day shutdown: Bay Bridge to nowhere
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A portion of the upper deck of the Bay Bridge just east of Yerba Buena Island will be demolished and replaced during Labor Day weekend.
SAN FRANCISCO (Map, News) - When the Bay Bridge shuts down Labor Day weekend, it will mark the first time the major artery between The East Bay and The City has been sealed since the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.
And it will not be the last time, California Department of Transportation officials said Tuesday.
The bridge will close at 8 p.m. Friday, Aug. 31, and reopen at 5 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 4. Caltrans crews will demolish and replace a section of roadway the length of a football-field on the upper deck east of the Yerba Buena Island tunnel. The lower deck is being closed for safety reasons.
But even as Caltrans officials prepare for the seismic work, they are planning the next complete bridge shutdown in a year and a half — also part of the monumental earthquake safety project started in May of last year, which is expected to be completed in 2013, Caltrans spokesman Bart Ney said Tuesday.
Like the Labor Day closure, and last year’s seismic shutdown of the bridge’s lower deck, the 2008 closure will likely happen on a holiday weekend. That’s because traffic on a typical Labor Day weekend is 20 percent lighter than the average weekday, Saturday or Sunday, when 250,000-300,000 vehicles cross the bridge, Ney said.
Caltrans’ message to commuters is simple: Plan ahead and use public transit. Travel-planning hotline 511 and Web site 511.org are poised to help, Ney said.
Bay Area Rapid Transit is again adding more trains, as well as overnight service, to 14 of its 43 stations during the shutdown, BART spokesman Linton Johnson said.
Mary Currie, public affairs director for the Golden Gate Bridge Highway and Transportation District, said the Sausalito Arts Festival — one of Marin County’s most popular events — is also scheduled for Labor Day weekend. Despite added Golden Gate Transit and Golden Gate Ferry service, she expects significant traffic congestion on the Golden Gate Bridge and on
U.S. Highway 101 between the Richmond Bridge and San Francisco.
Switching gears
The Bay Bridge will be closed from 8 p.m. Friday, Aug. 31, to 5 a.m. Tuesday, Sept. 4. Construction crews will perform seismic-safety work on a section of the bridge east of the Yerba Buena Island tunnel.» Use alternate bridges: Golden Gate, Richmond-San Rafael, San Mateo-Hayward and Dumbarton.
» Transbay bus service will not be available — use 511.org for transit alternatives.
» BART will run overnight service to the following stations: Bay Fair, Downtown Berkeley, Coliseum/Oakland Airport, Concord, Daly City, Dublin/Pleasanton, El Cerrito Del Norte, Embarcadero, MacArthur, Powell, SFO, Walnut Creek, 12th Street Oakland and 24th Street. Visit bart.gov for schedule information.
» Take the ferry: Alameda-Oakland, Vallejo Baylink and Golden Gate ferries will run expanded service. Visit eastbayferry.com, baylinkferry.com and goldengateferry.org for details.
» People who live or work on Yerba Buena Island or Treasure Island will be granted access through a special permit. Visit baybridgeinfo.org for details.
Comments from Examiner Readers
5:46 PM MST on Mon., Sep. 3, 2007 re: "Bay Bridge to reopen at 6 p.m. today"
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5:26 PM MST on Mon., Sep. 3, 2007
re: "Bay Bridge to reopen today"
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3:41 PM MST on Mon., Sep. 3, 2007
re: "Bay Bridge to reopen today"
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Examiner Reader said:
We should keep on retainer CC Meyer and company. Why have we not heard about this on the national level? This is a marval to see that something can be completed ahead of schedule. Congrats CC Meyer and company. Other places across the country would want CC Meyer. First the Maze, now the partial section of the SF-Oakland Bay Bridge and what is next? California should try to keep them.
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Examiner Reader said:
Too bad the bridge is opening early. It's been nice and quiet in SF this weekend. Parking was plentiful, every place was less crowded, the natural SF wildlife came out of hiding, the sun shined down warmer than ever, dogs and cats got along, and the City was a better place for just one weekend. Too bad we can't shut down all the bridges leading into the City one weekend a month.
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davey crockett said:
sfgate.com Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi helped capture two suspects in a Western Addition drive-by shooting Friday that left one man hospitalized, authorities said. The unidentified victim was shot three times at 9:45 a.m. when two men drove up and started firing at two men at Fulton and Steiner streets, police Sgt. Neville Gittens said. The two victims ran but were followed by the gunmen, who fired more shots at Grove and Steiner streets. Mirkarimi, who was jogging in the area, heard gunfire, reported what he saw to police and got into a patrol car to help officers find the suspects, authorities said. Two men were arrested later Friday. Did you hear that Chrissy Daly , Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi is active and gets involved in his community while you yell and scream. I can imagine you yelling and screaming during this ordeal as will... oh my god stop my gut hurts..lol carl glovier
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