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TRANSACTIONS NEWSLETTER ONLINE

February/March 2007

Project Update:
New Benicia-Martinez Span Nears Completion

The futuristic toll plaza of the new Benicia-Martinez Bridge is designed for open-road tolling, allowing motorists with FasTrak toll tags to pass through the far left lanes at highway speeds. (Photo: John Huseby, Caltrans)

Crews are now putting the finishing touches on the second span of the Benicia-Martinez Bridge in preparation for its opening later this year. The span will carry five lanes of northbound traffic from Contra Costa County to Solano County, doubling the capacity of Interstate 680 over the Carquinez Strait. The existing bridge will be converted to four lanes of southbound traffic with a two-way bicycle/pedestrian lane — another link in the regional Bay Trail.

The new bridge makes a graceful curve across the Strait, east of both the existing span and the Union Pacific railroad bridge. The $1.2-billion project includes a new toll plaza plus reconstruction of the Interstate 680 interchanges at Interstate 780 in Benicia and Marina Vista/Waterfront Road in Martinez.

The opening of the bridge and toll plaza will mark the Bay Area debut of open-road tolling, which will allow vehicles equipped with FasTrak® electronic toll tags to bypass the toll booths and cross the span without slowing down.

The deck of the Benicia-Martinez Bridge was cast in place in 15-foot-wide segments, creating the illusion that the new bridge materialized slowly out of thin air. Each of the bridge’s 17 columns sprouted balanced deck segments that grew toward their neighboring column until all 344 segments were cast. The last step, completed in December 2006, involved connecting these branches to create a sleek, continuous deck.

MTC oversees the project in its role as the Bay Area Toll Authority.
— Karin Betts

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