Peek at SoCal’s newest milestone: LAist

Two cable-stayed towers along the Long Beach portion of the new bridge. (Chava Sanchez / LAist)

Our news is free on LAist. To make sure you get our coverage: subscribe to our daily newsletter. To Support Not-for-Profit Public Service Journalism: Donate Now.

This fall, a huge new bridge rising over Long Beach Harbor will open to the public. And when it’s lit up at night to celebrate civic holidays – like the futuristic World Dodgers Championships – you’ll become a familiar landmark visible for miles.

I recently got a sneak peek at the $ 1.5 billion Gerald Desmond swing bridge, and yes, that’s its actual name at the moment. It has been built over the past few years alongside the original but old Gerald Desmond Bridge which connects downtown Long Beach to the terminal island.

The Gerald Desmond Bridge, which opened in 1968, will be demolished when the new bridge opens later this year. (Chava Sanchez / LAist)

The old bridge was deteriorating, with chunks of concrete tumbling onto the grounds of Long Beach Harbor below. It was also very narrow for the volume of port truck traffic today.

Construction workers suspended over the bridge communicate with co-workers. (Chava Sanchez / LAist)

These days, workers are doing the final parts of preparing the bridge to open. During my visit, I saw a few men working from the cherry collector bucket, raised high above the new bridge that spans the rear canal of Long Beach Harbor.

A worker hanging above the bridge signals at a crane operator below. (Chava Sanchez / LAist)

It’s dangerous work, but the view from 200 feet above the water is fantastic. Queen Mary has high-rise buildings in the city center of Long Beach on one side and the Industrial Port on the other.

“Fifteen percent of all imported goods pass through this bridge every day. This is why this is a vital project for the national economy,” said Duane Kinagi, executive officer of capital programs at Long Beach Port.

Duane Kinagi oversees construction of the new Long Beach Harbor Bridge. (Chava Sanchez / LAist)

He is responsible for building the new bridge and he accompanied me around. Here are five cool things to know about:

1. It is a cable-stayed bridge

California has other smaller cable-stayed bridges for people or bicycles, but this is the first in the state to have sufficient length and strength to carry cars and trucks.

What makes it a cable-stayed bridge is that the entire weight of the roadway is carried by cables attached directly to the pylons. (A suspension bridge, like the Golden Gate, differs because it has long cables running from tower to tower, with the road suspended by smaller vertical cables connected to the main cable.)

50 to 100 cables make up one of the long suspension cables for the new bridge. (Chava Sanchez / LAist)

This bridge contains 80 cables, with 40 of them connected to each of the two 515-foot towers. Cables are bundles of thin cables combined for strength.

The resulting structure resembles one of the string and cartoon art projects that children make in elementary school, to show how straight lines arranged along a right angle can create a graceful curve.

Construction workers ready to dampen cables for installation. The damper sits near the base of the cable and protects it from corrosion, fires, terrorist attacks, or impacts from a stray truck. (Chava Sanchez / LAist)

The two towers were built first, then the pavements were constructed from one part of the towers at a time. The bridge ends with a 500-foot back span, that is, a road up to the tower, 1,000 feet between the towers and 500 feet down the other side. This technique is called “balanced cantilever construction”. (Long Beach Harbor has a gallery of construction photos here.)

2. It contains three types of earthquake protection

There is a rubber-covered gap where an approach ramp meets a 2,000-foot bridge road. Rubber covers the expansion joint, which consists of interlocking sections that enable the bridge extension to move forward and backward in line with the approach path.

“These joints have to absorb an enormous amount of movement,” Kenagi said. “So this joint has been designed to accommodate horizontal movement, in both directions, and vertical movement up to six feet.”

Bridge cables prevent the road from moving dangerously up and down in high winds or earthquakes, as engineers call it whip-like movement.

Underneath the base of the road are giant shock absorbers – like what you see in a pickup truck – to absorb and dampen the bridge’s movement in the event of an earthquake. But these shock absorbers are 30 feet long.

Giant shock absorbers help hold the bridge against earthquakes. (Chava Sanchez / LAist)

3. It will illuminate the night

Each of the 80’s have their own set of LED lights that shine from the roadbed and down the turrets. It will become a new landmark, which can be seen at night for miles across the Los Angeles Basin.

So you can see them drenched in red, white, and blue for Independence Day, purple and gold from the Lakers for the tournaments, and maybe some Dodger Blue in the future World Championships.

4. You can ride a bike and walk on it

The bridge has a completely separate sheltered lane for cycling and walking on the more beautiful ocean side. Two bike lanes four feet long in each direction and another four feet for pedestrians. There are also turnouts that act as watch platforms to stop and enjoy the view.

The track is named after Mark Bixby. He was a staunch advocate of cycling in Long Beach, who died a few years earlier in a plane crash.

But once you step off the new bridge, a hike or ride to San Pedro isn’t quite bike-friendly. This new trail ends at the terminal island. To cross the rest of the canal and into San Pedro, you’ll be back on the rough, well-worn streets with trucks and winding turns. It would be up to the city and port of Los Angeles to come up with improvements.

5. You’ve become super-sized

The canal lane under the new bridge is 50 feet higher than the old bridge. This additional elevation opens up the Long Beach Harbor canal inland for the tallest cargo ships and makes the docks more valuable for shippers leasing waterfront space.

The new cable-stayed bridge has higher clearance than the old Gerald Desmond bridge, seen here with truck traffic. (Chava Sanchez / LAist)

This new bridge serves as the end of Interstate 710, so it is built to highway standards. That means there are three lanes in each direction and emergency lanes on both sides, so it is much wider – and possibly safer – than the Old Bridge, which lacked breakdown lanes.

6. You still need a name

Gerald Desmond was a Democratic politician who served in the city government of Long Beach and died in 1964 of kidney cancer when he was 48 years old. As the city attorney general, he helped Long Beach obtain a portion of the tidal oil revenue that helped fund the original bridge.

Gerald Desmond was a Democratic politician who served as the attorney general of Long Beach before his death in 1964. The bridge connecting Long Beach and Terminal Island which opened in 1968 is named after him. (Long Beach Public Library)

When the bridge of the same name that connects Ocean Avenue and Terminal Island opened in 1968, it replaced the dreaded “temporary” pontoon bridge that had been in existence for 24 years.

Traffic on the four-lane Desmond Bridge is also viewed from the new bridge. The new bridge will have six designated lanes in addition to safety lanes on the side. (Chava Sanchez / LAist)

But now the original Gerald Desmond Bridge has reached the end of its useful life. Currently, the new bridge is known simply as the Gerald Desmond Alternative Bridge.

So who gets the naming rights on the new device?

It was built with $ 1.5 billion from Long Beach Port, Caltrans, the Metro, and the US Department of Transportation. But upon completion, you will belong to Caltrans, so the state legislature has to choose the new name.

Hope he is named to someone who shares the best qualities of a bridge.

It’s colorful, resilient under pressure, and has a mission that connects us all.

What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos