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More Money Needed To Complete New Bay Bridge Tower

OAKLAND (KCBS) _ It's going to cost an extra $300 million to build the new tower on the eastern span of the Bay Bridge, that according to officials with the Bay Area Toll Authority.

John Goodwin with the Bay Area Toll Authority said $145 million of the added price tag goes to the contractor to help speed up construction time that was lost waiting for shipments from China and new complex orders.

KCBS' Bob Melrose Reports:

"It doesn't actually change the program budget at all," Goodwin said. "There is a contingency built into the program budget, with ample funds to accommodate this. But it does change the project budget. This is designed to find ways to accelerate work on the self-anchored suspension portion of the bridge so we can get it open in late 2013."

More metal and other items have been needed to fit the tower in more complex ways, which has also added to the delays.

The entire eastern span is a $6.2 billion project.

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