Oakland Bay Bridge – East Span

Located between two major California fault lines, the seismically resilient East Span is the world’s longest single-tower, self-anchored suspension bridge. The eastern span replacement of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge was a construction project to replace a seismically unsound portion of the Bay Bridge with a new self-anchored suspension bridge (SAS) and a pair of viaducts.

The East Span project represents tremendous breakthroughs in bridge design and engineering, answering the complex challenges of the region’s seismicity, the San Francisco Bay’s formidable geological features, and community demand for a landmark structure. As a lifeline structure, the East Span is designed to withstand the strongest ground motions engineers can expect in a 1,500-year period.

The 2013 opening of the new East Span on the Bay Bridge added another jewel to the collection of architectural and engineering gems that adorn San Francisco Bay. The Bay area is known worldwide for some of the planet’s most diverse communities of wildlife and plants. Working with environmental groups to protect the marine mammals, birds, and fish that live in and around the Bay, the project team developed a comprehensive program to protect the Bay Area’s fragile environment, especially during construction activities.

• The East Span features a record-setting self-anchored suspension span of 1,263 feet.
• As a lifeline structure, the East Span is designed to withstand the strongest ground motions engineers can expect in a 1,500-year period.
• The project features the first use of seismic energy-absorbing shear link beams in the tower of a cable-supported bridge.
• The East Span is the first suspension bridge with no connection between the deck and tower.
• Precast girder segments for the Skyway weigh up to 750 tons each — the largest ever built in the world.
• State-of-the-art hinge pipe beams were designed and built at the expansion joints between bridge frames.