San Francisco Bay Bridge Closed for Monday Morning's Commute

Late Saturday, workers tested repairs that were made to patch a fix on the eastern span of the Bay Bridge that failed last Tuesday afternoon. That failure, of a fix made over Labor Day weekend when a crack was found in a support strut, resulted in a 5,000-pound steel assembly and two steel tie rods plunging into traffic.

Unfortunately for commuters, the test of the Bay Bridge fix failed, Caltrans said. As a result, adjustments will be made in the fix. Engineers were scheduled to begin another test tonight. If the repairs are deemed ready, several rounds of inspections from variouos agencies, including federal ones, will still need to be completed before the bridge opens.

The "new" fix is really just a strengthened and adjusted version of the original fix. As such, many are wary, and some residents of the Bay Area are concerned for their safety.

However, the adjustments being made by commuters are stressful and annoying. BART, the SF Bay Area's subway-like rapid transit system, is seeing record numbers. Additionally, as of Friday, the bridge district had lost $1 million worth of toll fees.

Still, the focus should be on safety and not money. The fear of another Minnesota bridge disaster hangs like the Sword of Damocles over the Bay Area. Some have said, even after the repair is complete, they will not use the Bay Bridge until some length of time has passed.

Written by Michael Santo