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Bridge-fix dry run finds minor glitch
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Navigating around the closure: The Bay Bridge will be closed Labor Day weekend from Friday at 8 p.m. until Tuesday at 5 a.m.
SAN FRANCISCO (Map, News) - A possible disruption to the Bay Bridge retrofit project was averted and crews were able to get back on schedule Thursday morning after preliminary tests showed there was not enough power to lift and replace a section of the span.
The bridge is being shut down from 8 p.m. today until 5 a.m. Tuesday to allow construction workers time to work on replacing a portion damaged in the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.
Two of the 16 computer-controlled hydraulic jacks that will lift the new section failed to provide enough power during a test Wednesday night, Caltrans Bay Bridge retrofit project spokesman Bart Ney said.
Crews had underestimated the size of the heaviest end of the viaduct and used more pressure during a test Thursday at 10 a.m. to fix the malfunction.
The jacks are required to move the new 350-foot Yerba Buena viaduct onto the lower deck in the area connecting the Yerba Buena Island tunnel to the new eastern span. Ney said the process takes 13 to 15 hours in the latter stages of the project, and the glitch could have delayed the reopening of the bridge.
The $40 million bridge construction should go as planned, and the seismically retrofitted bridge will be ready for drivers by Tuesday at 5 a.m., Ney said.
“That’s the reason why we do these types of tests,” Ney said. “We’re in great shape with the jacks.”
The crew will have backup machinery, so the likelihood of the bridge not opening on time Tuesday is small, Ney said.
The new section should last about 150 years. Crews first need to demolish the existing roadway and clean up the debris, which will take about 43 hours.
“It’s going to look at the same as it does now, except that it will be seismically safe,” Metropolitan Transportation Commission spokesman John Goodwin said. “The changes that will be visible will be at the toll plaza, where there will be changes to the FasTrak lane configuration,” which will have about 2,000 feet of extended striping.
The next scheduled Bay Bridge closure will be in approximately 18 months, Ney said.
mrosenberg@examiner.com
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5:46 PM MST on Mon., Sep. 3, 2007 re: "Bay Bridge to reopen at 6 p.m. today"
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3:41 PM MST on Mon., Sep. 3, 2007
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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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