Fix For Broken Bay Bridge Rods To Cost $1 Million
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS /AP) - Fixing problems caused when nearly three dozen steel rods broke on a new span of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge will cost about $1 million, a state transportation official said.
The work is not expected to delay the planned Labor Day opening of the span, Tony Anziano, a California Department of Transportation toll bridge program manager, told the San Francisco Chronicle in a story published Monday.
The rods that snapped last month after being tightened connect steel earthquake safety devices called shear keys to the deck of the bridge and a large concrete cap.
Caltrans Comes Up With Figure For Fix of Bay Bridge Bolt Problem
At least some of the failed rods are located beneath that cap and cannot easily be replaced. Crews instead will have to create two metal collars that will provide room for new rods to be inserted, Anziano said.
Workers are replacing the bridge's eastern span that was damaged during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. The work is designed to withstand a major temblor.
Tests have discovered hydrogen in some of the damaged steel rods, which is an indication of weakness in the metal.
Caltrans officials are looking into the fabrication and supply process for the bolts made by Dyson Corp. of Ohio.
"The department has ordered a full review to find out exactly what went wrong, to determine how it will be fixed and assure that responsible parties are held accountable," Caltrans spokesman Will Shuck told the Sacramento Bee.
A call to the company on Tuesday by The Associated Press was not immediately returned.
The Bee reported that at least 14 other parts built by Dyson for the suspension span have failed Caltrans quality tests. That's more failures than any other supplier on the contract, the Bee reported, citing Caltrans records.
Caltrans also is reviewing whether the broken bolts failed quality tests, Shuck said.
The Bee reported that the records it obtained were of tests of 352 parts for the suspension portion of the bridge.
While the records were not comprehensive, they showed that Dyson faced consistent quality control problems, the Bee said.
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