It was constructed between 2002 and 2013 and has no name other than the bridge's unofficial moniker ("San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge"). The replacement of the eastern bridge is the most costly public works project in California history,...
The new bridge consists of two main sections: a 12,989-foot suspension span that carries traffic across the bay from Oakland to Yerba Buena Island, and a four-lane toll bridge from Yerba Buena Island to Treasure Island. The total length of the new bridge is 17,852 feet.
It took seven years to build at a cost of $7.5 billion (USD). The main contractor was Kiewit Construction Company, with other contractors involved in specific aspects of the work. The lead architect was Skidmore, Owings & Merrill LLP, with Gensler as the technical advisor. The bridge was designed to be more resilient against earthquakes and severe weather conditions.
It opened for traffic on October 1, 2016, nearly six months after its official opening ceremony. The new bridge carried its first full day of traffic on November 3, 2016. It was officially closed in both directions until the end of December 2016 so that crews could finish painting the center lane red, the only traveling lane during weekday morning and evening commutes. The old bridge was demolished on January 18, 2017.
The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge's eastern span replacement
| San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge (eastern span replacement) | |
|---|---|
| Construction start | January 29, 2002 |
| Construction end | September 2, 2013 |
| Construction cost | $6.5 Billion ($7.18 billion in 2019 dollars) |
| Opened | September 2, 2013 10:15pm |
California is investing almost $7 billion to develop what it calls an architectural marvel: the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. However, the state saved a lot of money by outsourcing some of the building work. The new eastern span of the Bay Bridge will be designed to compete with its more famous relative, the Golden Gate Bridge. The main part of the new bridge will be built by the same company that constructed the original span: the Pritzker Prize-winning architect Thomas Kincaid (pictured above). He's been selected to create a design that meets the needs of drivers and pedestrians.
The new bridge has been called one of California's most expensive mistakes. In 2007, the state entered into a contract with O'Connor/Barnes LLC to build the new span. Under the terms of this agreement, the company would receive $150 million up front and another $50 million if it met certain performance targets. If it failed to meet these targets, the company would only get its initial payment back.
The state claims that this contract saves money because it requires the company to use materials that are already on site and to employ local workers who are paid prevailing wages. Critics say the deal was set up to fail so that Caltrans could restart the bidding process. They claim there are other cheaper alternatives available that were not considered during negotiations with O'Connor/Barnes.
One of the most amazing engineering constructions in the United States is the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge. The American Society of Civil Engineers designated the bridge as a nationally important structure in terms of engineering as well as its significance in California and national transportation history. The bridge connects Oakland and Yerba Buena Island with San Francisco. It consists of six separate bridges that connect over land and water. The main span measures 1410 feet from end to end, making it the longest suspension bridge in America.
The first bridge across the bay was built by Charles Crocker and William Caldecott between 1884 and 1890. They were followed by two more bridges built in the early 20th century: the 1939 Benicia–Jacksonville Bridge and the 1937 Treasure Island Bridge. In 1968, construction began on what is now known as the Bay Bridge. This bridge is an example of a self-anchored suspension bridge, which uses cables instead of pylons to support the road deck. It has three separate sections: the Main Span, the East Span, and the West Span. All three spans are made up of four large towers flanked by two-lane traffic decks supported by the suspension system. The total length of all three spans is 1410 feet (415 m), and they form the only route across the bay between San Francisco and Oakland.
The bridge is owned and operated by the California Department of Transportation.
Oakland, Calif. In the early 1930s, California designed and built the 8-mile Bay Bridge—with west and east spans linked by the world's biggest bore tunnel—in a mere 512 years. No example is more dramatic than worker safety laws: 24 men died building the original bridge; none have perished on the new span.
The Oakland-San Francisco Bay Bridge is an automobile crossing between Oakland, California, and San Francisco, California. It connects two of the most populous regions in California. The bridge carries four traffic lanes and provides views of the bay and surrounding cities. It also has a large pedestrian and bicycle path. The first portion of the bridge, which now carries only vehicles and rail traffic, was completed in 1936 at a cost of $14 million (equivalent to $150 million in 2007). The current bridge was built with support from federal funds made available through the Federal Highway Act of 1956. It was officially opened by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on July 4, 1937.
The longest suspension bridge in California, it links Oakland with Yerba Buena Island. The bridge consists of three parallel towers, each 310 feet high, connected by a network of long cables that hold up the deck about 50 feet above the water. The main span measures 1,070 feet from end to end. A viewfinder allows workers to see what they are doing while standing on the opposite side of the bay.
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