Big Sur – Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge

Big Sur –  Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge (March 16, 2017)

    There is a number of bridges that sustained damage during the past series of storms in California. One of the bridges in need of repairs is the Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge in Big Sur, a beautiful road trip. I have driven that stretch of road about 5 times in the past 25 years, high cliffs with the ocean far below. There are dirt roads leading off Highway 1 from each side of the road, I have always wondered what was at the end of them. I assumed there were homes because some can be sighted from the road, others I'm sure are way back in the mountains. It is a very primitive area, some people that have never been to California assume the entire state is crowded, like L.A. There are a lot places in the state that are vast wilderness, this is one of them. 

    The bridge suffered a crack in the center running perpendicular to the center line, it cracked

The crack penetrates the bridge from one side to the other and
all the way through the road bed.

completely through the concrete. Deconstruction of the bridge began last Monday, the 6 ton wrecking ball was not up to the task. A hydralic jack hammer on the end of a crane is doing the trick, a lot of rubble and re-bar laying on the bottom of the canyon floor. 

     The bridge is closed to any type of traffic, it may be a year or longer before a new bridge is built. This is a big demolition job, the entire bridge will be rubble 50 feet or more below the road. The people removing it will have to be highly trained and methodical to complete the task safely. 

      I'm actually writing about it due to another thought that I have pertaining to discovery of the crack. When the road is pitch dark in the middle of the night, traffic going about it's normal traveling routine's coming and going, how can something like this be expected? My brother in law lived in Seward Alaska for a long time. One night traveling from Seward to Anchorage the truck he

A huge amount of debris, far below. 

was driving suddenly was airborne, he never left the highway. The road had dropped 4 feet during an earthquake, he had no idea it had. No one was injured, the car was OK, I've thought about that incident off and on after it happened. I related that to the Pfeiffer Canyon Bridge, I wonder who discovered the cracking bridge. I also wonder how in the world a person could prepare for a catastrophic event of that type? The first few cars that went over the bridge without noticing apparently made it. A broken bridge would be the furthest thing from my mind during a hard down pouring rain storm, how much visibility was there? Is this one of those occurence's that would be labled an unfortunate accident if someone was injured or worse? It doesn't appear "fault and blame" come into focus here, the bridge looks to be at least 50 years old. Even if blame could be placed what use is it now? The main thing is repair and get going again. I think of the many bridges I have used that had pot holes, big chunks missing from the road way, cracks and broken railings, I wonder now what would it take for me not to use a bridge. It's an interesting question: What in your mind would make a bridge that you have used for many years impassable? I'd like to have your input, I don't know what my criteria is. (Click here for an article on driving during storms.)

Thanks for reading jimandkate

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