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Westbound Deck of Bay Bridge to Close During Presidents’ Day Weekend

Drivers Will Experience a Slight Alignment Change After the Bridge Reopens

January 17, 2012
The westbound deck of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge will be closed during Presidents’ Day weekend 2012. Construction of a slight detour near the toll plaza will require the upper deck heading into San Francisco to be closed from 8 p.m. Friday, February 17 to 5 a.m. Tuesday, February 21. Eastbound traffic will have full access to the bridge during the closure.

Weather could slow construction and delay the reopening of the westbound deck, which will remain closed until this essential operation is completed. Get the latest construction and closure updates at BayBridgeInfo.org, and the latest information on transit and transportation options at 511.org.

Westbound drivers will experience a slightly different approach to the bridge after Presidents’ Day weekend. While speed limits will remain the same, drivers heading toward San Francisco should be prepared for a slight detour as they approach the upper deck.

During the closure, motorists are encouraged to take public transit and/or alternate driving routes. Transit options will include overnight BART service at select stations and additional ferries; AC Transit will not be providing Transbay Service. Motorists should allow extra time for travel and use of other bridges, including the Golden Gate Bridge, the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, the San Mateo-Hayward Bridge and the Dumbarton Bridge.

By implementing this detour, along with an eastbound detour that was installed during Memorial Day weekend in 2011, the entire bridge will open to the public earlier than previously scheduled. The detours will allow construction crews to work between the existing and new bridges to complete the new eastbound lanes, which is not possible without the traffic realignment. The current westbound lanes are in the path of the new bridge’s eastbound lanes. Without the detours, eastbound traffic would have stayed on the original bridge for about six months after westbound traffic traveled on the new bridge.

For more information about the eastbound detour, visit BayBridgeInfo.org/otd_detour.

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Previously:

• New Bay Bridge East Span Reaches High Point: Cable Pulling Begins This Week
  December 2011
• Greetings in a Big Way: Bridge Engineers Install Oversized Wreath on Bay Bridge Tunnel Portal
  December 2011
• Happy 75th Birthday, Bay Bridge!
  November 2011
• Bay Area Celebrates Completion of Bay Bridge East Span Decks
  October 2011
• Crews Closing Gap in Bay Bridge East Span Decks
  October 2011
• Crews Start Installation of Final East Span Deck Pieces
  September 2011
• Lights Illuminate Bay Bridge East Span Progress
  August 2011
• Video: Bay Bridge East Span Construction Update
  August 2011
• Catwalk Installation Complete on East Span
  August 2011
• World's Largest Cable Saddle Placed Atop Longest Self-Anchored Suspension Span
  May 2011
• Bay Bridge Eastbound Drivers: Prepare for Detour to Begin Memorial Day Weekend
  May 2011
• It's a Bird, It's a Plane...It's a Cement Truck?
  April 2011
• East Span Tower Construction Begins Final Phase With Capping of Legs
  April 2011
• East Span 4x4! Crews Lift Final Four Tower Leg Sections in Four Days
  March 2011
• East Span Now Towers Over Original Bridge
  February 2011
• Thanks to Detours, New Bay Bridge East Span to Open in 2013
  February 2011
• Second Set of Bay Bridge Tower Sections in Place
  November 2010
• Bay Bridge East Span Tower Reaches New Heights
  October 2010
• New Bay Bridge East Span Construction Goes Vertical
  July 29, 2010
• Photos: Historic Lift of Self-Anchored Suspension Tower Sections for the New Bay Bridge East Span
  July 2010
• Photos: Unloading First SAS Tower Sections
  July 2010
• First East Span Tower Sections Arrive in the Bay Area
  July 9, 2010
• First SAS Tower Sections Set Sail For Bay Area
  June 28, 2010
• Historic Lift of First Self-Anchored Suspension Span Section for New Bay Bridge
  February 2010
• More Bay Bridge photos