I was just quoted in a USA Today article on carmageddon:
Daniel Faigin, a computer security specialist and amateur historian of California freeways, says that’s what happened in 1984, when drivers avoided the West Side when it hosted the Summer Olympics. “It’s going to be bad, but it’s not going to be as bad as they say it’s going to be,” Faigin says.
Still, he’s not as confident that contractors will meet their timetable to reopen an hour before his daily crossing of the Sepulveda Pass in a car pool.
“Our van is probably not going to drive in on Monday morning,” Faigin says. “I’m not sure it’ll be open. We’ll just work from home that day.”
Listening to Kevin Roderick on my bike today, he was saying warnings on this have been posted as far north as Oregon!
Will they have it open in time for the van? I’m unsure, after reading the detailed description of how they are taking it down:
At approximately 5 a.m. Saturday morning, as many as four “hoe rams,” or rolling jack hammers of various sizes will begin to chip away at the south side of the bridge. Approximately 4,000 tons of concrete will be removed in the first phase of demolition work. Two Hoe rams will be stationed on the bridge deck starting in the center working toward each end. Once they have reached the ends of the bridge, two hoe rams will begin to work on the ground also starting in the center and working toward both ends. These giant and powerful demolition machines will deliver between 1,200 and 7,500 foot-pounds of power to break away concrete from the bridge. This compares to 90 foot-pounds delivered by a common hand-held jack hammer. Operators in these machines will be able to deliver between 300 and 600 blows per minute on the concrete decking to break pieces into sizes no bigger than a basketball or microwave oven which can then be easily hauled away from the demolition site. Later, the concrete will be pulverized and recycled. The bridge’s railing will also be taken down by hoe-ram. Front-end loaders will also be used during the demolition to load demolition debris into trucks.
While the hoe rams steadily chip away at the concrete, other workers using long-handled oxygen/acetylene torches will cut the steel rebar from the bridge deck amid a crackle of sparks. Workers will be tied to a secure anchor and will be wearing fall protection equipment as they work. Workers will continue to cut the rebar into smaller pieces on the ground so that it can also be recycled.
This demolition work is expected to last throughout Sunday, July 17 as crews also demolish the bride’s south columns, leaving the other two columns in-tact to support the north side of the bridge.
Once the demolition operation is complete, an army of laborers will thoroughly clean the edge of the bridge to assure that no particles are left to fall on the traffic below. Finally, the remaining portion of the bridge will be inspected by structural engineers from Kiewit and Caltrans.
This demo work is expected to last until 2 a.m. Monday morning, July 18, when crews will wrap up demolition and begin their final cleanup to prepare the freeway for reopening by 5 a.m. Between 10 and 20 large trucks and several front end loaders will be used for the cleanup. The freeway surface under the bridge will be cleaned by a parade of street sweepers, inspected, and finally restriped with fresh paint. Ramps and freeway connectors will reopen by 6 a.m.
That sounds pretty ambitious to me, especially as we normally enter the 405 at Nordhoff at 6:05am.
