Although the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge has been with us long enough at this point that we almost have to stop referring to it as "new," bits of the original span are of course still hanging around, like leftovers you haven’t quite managed to throw out yet.
Our bridge hoarding problem will improve incrementally on Saturday, as Caltrans employs 8,000 pounds of explosives to implode one of the old piers between noon and 12:40 p.m. Note that this will affect traffic, as they may stop bridge crossings between 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
In theory, there’s no particular reason why the pier work should impact drivers on the bridge. But it’s not hard to imagine the nightmare scenario of an anxious weekend commuter unaware of the plans and swerving when he or she hears the presumably distinct sound of an 8,000 pound bomb going off nearby (albeit in a controlled manner).
The agency will blow another of the several-million ton piers on October 29, employing 12,000 pounds of explosive material that time. They schedule the demolitions in the fall, when the smallest number of migratory marine animals frequent the bay, and for when tides will mitigate the effects of the blast. Because this is San Francisco: Even our explosives should be holistic.
- Caltrans Implodes Piers [Caltrans]