A new suspension bridge is being built across the Carquinez Straits in northern California.
Commuters crossing the Carquinez spans have noticed the gradual progression of the new bridge, which was begun Jan. 29, 2000. The bridge’s two main towers, each 410 feet tall – only 17 feet shorter than the Golden Gate – were completed a few months ago and drivers have since been puzzled by the towers’ tilt. “I think that’s what the perception was (that the towers were crooked),” said Caltrans spokesman Bart Ney. In fact, the towers do tilt a few feet toward each other, Ney said. It’s a design feature that adds stability.
Now that the towers are up, two two-foot-diameter cables will be spun 2,390 feet between the towers starting in September. Each is composed of 37 individual strands. The strands are made by spinning cable back and forth 232 times. The process may last until the end of the year.
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