San Mateo–Hayward Bridge facts for kids
The San Mateo–Hayward Bridge, often called the San Mateo Bridge, is a long bridge in California. It crosses the San Francisco Bay, connecting the San Francisco Peninsula with the East Bay. The bridge starts in Foster City, near San Mateo, and ends in Hayward. It is the longest bridge in California.
This bridge is part of State Route 92. It helps connect major highways like Interstate 880 and U.S. Route 101. It's located between the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge and the Dumbarton Bridge. Sometimes, people use it to avoid traffic on those other bridges. The state of California owns and takes care of the bridge.
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Bridge History and Design
The First Bridge (1929)
The first San Mateo Bridge opened on March 2, 1929. It was built by a private company and was known as the San Francisco Bay toll bridge. At that time, it was the longest bridge in the world!
This original bridge was mostly a long, flat structure called a causeway. In the middle, it had five special sections that could lift up. This "lift span" allowed tall ships to pass underneath. When the lift was down, cars had about 35 feet (11 meters) of space. When it was up for ships, there was 135 feet (41 meters) of space.
Even though it was exciting at first, not many cars used the bridge in its early years. It lost money in its first year. The State of California bought the bridge in 1951 for $6 million. By 1955, more than 9,000 cars used it daily. Ships passing through meant the bridge had to stop traffic about six times a day, which caused delays.
The Modern Bridge (1967)
As more cars and ships used the bay, a new, better bridge was needed. Construction on the modern bridge began in 1961 and it opened in 1967. It cost about $70 million to build.
The new bridge was designed to be a fixed, high-level bridge. This meant it wouldn't need to lift up for ships, solving the traffic delay problem. It has a special type of steel deck called an "orthotropic deck." This design makes the bridge lighter and stronger.
A huge floating crane called the Marine Boss was built in 1966 to help construct the bridge. It could lift very heavy sections of the bridge into place. This crane was later used for other famous lifts, like moving the Concorde airplane and the Space Shuttle Enterprise.
The total length of the bridge is about 7 miles (11.3 kilometers). The western part, which is higher, is about 1.9 miles (3.1 kilometers) long. The eastern part is a longer, flatter section about 5.1 miles (8.2 kilometers) long. The high western section crosses a shipping channel and has a clearance of 135 feet (41 meters) for ships.
Today, about 93,000 cars and other vehicles use the bridge every day. This is almost double what it was designed for! The bridge's steel deck was paved with a special epoxy asphalt concrete. This surface lasted for almost 40 years before it needed to be replaced.
When it first opened, the high part of the bridge had six lanes, but the eastern part only had four. This caused traffic jams. In 2002, the eastern part was widened to six lanes, making traffic flow much better.
Large power lines also cross the bay next to the bridge. They were built in the 1950s and bring electricity to the San Francisco Peninsula.
Bridge Upgrades and Repairs
Earthquake Safety (1997–2000)
After a big earthquake in 1989, the bridge was closed briefly as a safety check. From 1997 to 2000, the bridge went through a major upgrade to make it safer during earthquakes. This process is called "seismic retrofitting."
Widening the Bridge (2002–2003)
The bridge used to have very bad traffic during evening commutes. To fix this, a new eastern section was built in 2002 for westbound traffic. The old eastern section was then used only for eastbound traffic. This expanded the bridge from four lanes to six lanes, matching the high-rise section. After this, the speed limit on the bridge was raised to 65 mph (105 kph).
Beam Repair (2010–2012)
In 2010, during a routine check, a cracked beam was found on the bridge. This beam was part of the earthquake safety upgrades. Workers made a temporary repair with a steel plate. Two years later, a permanent repair was done, which required closing the bridge for a weekend.
New Road Surface (2015)
In 2015, the bridge's road surface on the high-rise section needed to be replaced after almost 40 years. This work required closing the bridge completely for two weekends in May 2015. A new type of concrete surface was used, which is expected to last a long time.
Werder Pier
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After the new bridge was built, most of the old 1929 bridge was taken down. However, the western part of the old bridge was saved. San Mateo County bought it in 1968 for just $10! This section became the 4,055-foot (1,236-meter) long Werder Fishing Pier. It was known as a great place to catch sharks in San Francisco Bay.
The pier was closed to the public in 1996. This was because it was used as a work area for the earthquake safety upgrades on the new bridge. Also, the pier's structure had started to wear down from being in the ocean environment. There were concerns about its safety.
In 2013, the land leading to the pier was given to Foster City. There are plans to build a new park in the area.
Tolls
You only pay a toll when you are driving westbound (towards San Mateo) on the bridge. The toll plaza is on the east side of the bridge.
Since July 2010, the toll for regular cars is $5. Larger vehicles pay $5 for each axle they have. Drivers can pay with cash or use a special electronic device called FasTrak.
During busy times, the two left lanes are special HOV lanes. This means cars with two or more people, or motorcycles, can use them for a lower toll of $2.50. The next three lanes are only for FasTrak users. When it's not busy, the HOV lanes also become FasTrak-only lanes.
Images for kids
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Lift span of the original bridge
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The view of the East Bay as seen by eastbound traffic on the descent from the highrise
See also
In Spanish: Puente San Mateo-Hayward para niños
