THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, May 12, 1996 TAG: 9605120145
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B2 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE STONE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: YORKTOWN LENGTH: Short : 40 lines
Engineers and construction crews are breathing easier after the final section of the new George P. Coleman Memorial Bridge settled snugly into place Saturday.
``We're pretty much over the hump,'' said Bill Cannell, a spokesman for the Virginia Department of Transportation. ``They have that final span set, and that's the key. We have a full span now. We're all pretty excited about it.''
Saturday's success marks a first in the history of bridge construction. Never before have builders constructed a span in sections in one place and then floated them to the place where they will stand.
And Cannell planned to celebrate the achievement by being among the first people to traverse the new span - on foot - Saturday evening. ``I think I'm going to walk across and have dinner in Gloucester,'' he said. ``It's walkable from either side.''
Vehicles are scheduled to begin moving across the new, four-lane span by May 16. But with no major delays or problems, Cannell said it's possible the opening might come a little sooner.
The 5- to 6-foot joints between each span section must be finished and filled, and concrete barrier walls near those joints must be built. Traffic lanes are already being marked.
There was some concern about the weather Saturday as crews worked to get the last of the six new sections into place over the York River between Yorktown and Gloucester Point.
``They were really worried about getting the swing span in before the thunderstorms hit,'' Cannell said.
River traffic won't benefit from the new span until sometime in June. It will take that long to complete all the power connections for the twin swing spans. Testing of those sections should begin in a few weeks, Cannell said. by CNB