Bay Bridge S-Curve Update

OAKLAND, CA — The state Toll Bridge Program Oversight Committee this week approved a plan by Caltrans and the California Highway Patrol to modify by July 1, 2010 the off-peak lane closure schedule and the enhanced enforcement program along the “S-curve” corridor on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge. The Committee also established a $660,000 contingency fund to reinstitute lane closures and enhanced enforcement if necessary at any time during the remainder of 2010.

The plan to normalize traffic management and enforcement through the S-curve is driven by the effectiveness of traffic engineering measures and motorist outreach efforts undertaken since November 11, 2009. These include installation of an additional set of “40 MPH Zone Ahead” signs plus two additional sets of speed advisory signs, activation of nine overhead changeable message signs along various Bay Bridge approaches, installation of electronic radar speed-feedback signs, the addition of reflective paint stripes to barrier rails, continuous solid white striping on all lane lines, installation of “rumble strips” in advance of and within the S-curve corridor, installation of new fencing on the north side of the upper (westbound) deck, and the installation of permanent remote traffic monitoring stations on both decks. These stations use roadway sensors to transmit real-time traffic speed and volume information to the Traffic Management Center at Caltrans District 4 headquarters in Oakland.

CHP statistics indicate that there was just a single accident on the Bay Bridge S-curve in April 2010 and that the rate of accidents plummeted to about one per week — with no fatalities — in the 171 days from November 11, 2009 through April 30, 2010 from almost one per day in the first 59 days after the temporary detour section opened in September 2009.

Since November 2009, the Toll Bridge Program Oversight Committee has provided approximately $4 million through the state Toll Bridge Seismic Retrofit Program to finance the S-Curve lane closures and enhanced CHP enforcement.

The Toll Bridge Program Oversight Committee is comprised of chief executives of Caltrans, the California Transportation Commission and the Bay Area Toll Authority. The California Highway Patrol is responsible for traffic safety and saving lives on the road. Caltrans owns and operates the state highway system. The Bay Area Toll Authority administers toll revenues from the seven state-owned toll bridges in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Contacts:

Trent Cross, CHP, Golden Gate Division: (707) 373-7892

Brigetta Smith, Caltrans District 4: (510) 286-5898

John Goodwin, Bay Area Toll Authority: (415) 778-5262