Richmond-San Rafael Bridge joint repairs begin

Work to permanently repair an eroding portion of the RichmondSan Rafael Bridge was scheduled to begin Monday night and stretch for two weeks, but state officials say it won’t affect the morning or evening commutes and will only slightly disrupt traffic the rest of the time.

Crews will be on the bridge from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. each weekday, and, while they’re working, one lane will be coned off in each direction of the 5½-mile-long bridge, said Tony Tavares, Caltrans District Four director. No work will be done on Sundays.

“Our plan is to have the bridge open each day before the morning commute,” Tavares said. “We want minimal disruptions to traffic.”

The part that needs repairing is an expansion joint on the upper deck that allows the bridge to move when the temperature changes and to absorb the constant pounding of more than 80,000 cars a day. Some of the joint crumbled on the morning of Feb. 7, sending chunks of concrete plummeting onto the lower deck and causing major damage to a car passing underneath.

The workhorse bridge was shut for nine hours, creating a traffic nightmare, while Caltrans installed a metal plate to keep more concrete from falling. The plate made the bridge safe again, Caltrans officials said, but it’s only a temporary fix until the weatherbeaten joint can be replaced.

The $300,000 project will be done by engineering contractor O.C. Jones & Sons. Work might be delayed in nasty weather.

The joint is one of about 800 on the bridge, and while they’re repairing it crews will be inspecting all of the other joints, Tavares said. The bridge was built in 1956, and periodically needs similar upgrades — but they usually don’t come with emergency traffic shutdowns attached.

“These expansion joints are kind of like parts on your car that wear out, like how you have to replace your tires after a certain point,” Tavares said. “And actually, this expansion joint has been on bridge for its entire life, so it’s lasted a long time.”