Millions To Be Spent Monitoring Bolts On New Bay Bridge

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) — The story of broken bolts on the new eastern span of the Bay Bridge does not appear to be over as Caltrans says further inspections may cost up to $10 million—not including the price for needed repair work.

Last fall, Caltrans completed work on the so-called "saddle" repair to compensate for the damage to about one-third of the 96 bolts attached to rods on the bridge. However, Caltrans will now have to spend about $10 million in 2014 to inspect thousands of remaining bolts throughout the bridge—including 400 used to anchor the base of the iconic tower.

Caltrans said those bolts may have been compromised as well and they may have to inspect each one of them, according to KCBS and Chronicle Insider Phil Matier in Monday's Matier and Ross column.

"All these bolts were created to the industry's specifications, but so are the ones that broke," Caltrans spokesman Andrew Gordon said. "We just want to make sure that we don't have any long-term issues that might catch us off guard down the road."

The $10 million cost could rise if additional testing is needed.

"It really depends on the results that we get," Gordon said. "It's too soon to say until we get closer to the end of the current phase of testing."

Results from that test won't be available until next year. If any bolts need replacement, it could cost millions more to replace them.

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