Paperwork puts breaks on old Bay Bridge span teardown

TREASURE ISLAND, Calif.

The demolition of the old, seismically unsafe eastern span of the Bay Bridge is facing a paperwork delay that could leave the precarious pathway standing for months longer than originally planned.

KTVU Consumer Editor Tom Vacar climbed up on the old span Wednesday and found out why Caltrans is saying it had to shift resources for what it called the greater good.

Caltrans officials noted there was never a final tear down date for the old span, but instead a projected range of three to five years to complete the project. According to the latest, ever-changing projections, demolition of the old Bay Bridge span is now five months behind schedule and $5 million over budget.

That delay occurred largely because Caltrans -- worried that a major quake could collapse the old bridge -- took its staff off demolition to get the new bridge open by Labor Day.

"Project staff made the decision to focus on getting traffic on the seismically safe bridge and there's a finite amount of time, finite amount of staff," explained Bay Bridge Project spokesman Andrew Gordon.

That staff shift slowed the permitting process for the demolition. According to officials, the pedestrian and bike path extending to Treasure Island will now open summer of next year instead of early next year.

The real worry remains that the new tower span could be damaged if the old span collapses in a major quake.

"But we're also looking at ways to make up that time with other contracts," said Gordon.

The possible $5 million delay cost is well within the existing Bay Bridge project budget. Big project engineers will tell you in any major project, whether construction or demolition, there is no set ending date. It's just too complicated. At best it's an educated guess.

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Paperwork puts breaks on old Bay Bridge span teardown