WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Bay Area Congressional Representatives Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), Mike Thompson (D-Napa Valley) and Lynn Woolsey (D-Petaluma) today announced $6.5 million in new seismic retrofit funding for the Golden Gate Bridge from the U.S. Department of Transportation.
The Golden Gate Bridge continues to be vulnerable to earthquakes along the San Andreas and Hayward Faults. Engineers have indicated that the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, centered 60 miles from the bridge, presented the maximum stress that the bridge could tolerate. Phase I of the project is complete. The new federal funding will be used to begin Phase II which will focus on the retrofitting of the bridge’s south viaduct and anchorages, the Fort Point Arch and the south pylons.
"The Golden Gate Bridge is an essential corridor for commerce and recreation in the Bay Area as well as a beloved national symbol,” said House Democratic Whip Pelosi. “These funds will help ensure that in case of an earthquake many lives will be saved, and the bridge will survive."
“This is a critical piece of federal involvement to ensure the safety of this national landmark,” said Rep. Thompson. “More than 130,000 vehicles cross the Golden Gate Bridge each day, with much of that traffic originating from the North Coast. It is imperative to bring this project further to its close.”
“The Golden Gate Bridge is a historic treasure and a vital traffic corridor for the North Bay,” said Rep. Woolsey. “I’m pleased that Transportation Secretary Mineta allocated additional money to ensure the structural integrity of the bridge in the event of an earthquake. The Golden Gate Bridge is essential to alleviating the traffic on Highway 101. If the bridge went down, traffic in the North Bay would come to a stop.”
Reps. Pelosi, Thompson and Woolsey secured over $35.8 million from the Department
of Transportation over the past three years for the ongoing seismic retrofit
project. Last fall, Reps. Pelosi, Thompson and Woolsey and Senators Feinstein
and Boxer requested $8.1 million for the Golden Gate Bridge in the FY 02 Transportation
Appropriations bill. This $6.5 million discretionary grant is in addition to
the $2 million appropriated in the FY 02 bill last year.