News

San Rafael Bridge Drivers Urged to Stay Off City Streets During Delays

Published

8 years ago

April 29, 2019

Traffic delays are expected to the continue on the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge for the next several weeks as Caltrans continues necessary bridge maintenance and repairs. Given that, the Richmond Police Department is asking motorists not to use city streets as a detour.

“Navigational apps like WAZE that direct motorists to surface streets in Richmond will “only increase your drive time,” RPD stated in an online post today.

RPD advised motorists to plan ahead as Caltrans continues its $8 million project to repair 31 expansion joints on the upper deck. The three-month project started in February after concrete chunks fell from the upper to lower deck of the 63-year-old bridge, damaging a car and prompting a nine-hour bridge shut down. Weeks later, more concrete pieces fell from the upper to lower deck. Early this month, pothole debris kicked up and struck a car windshield.

Another 30 joints on the lower deck will be repaired later this year, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC). The repairs have delayed the project to create a bicycle and pedestrian path along the span’s westbound lanes. Last year, a third eastbound lane was opened during peak commute hours to alleviate increasing traffic.

The bridge has a total of 856 deck joints, of which 795 were rebuilt in the early 2000s as part of the seismic retrofit of the bridge or through other rehab projects. The remaining 61 joints “are located in the bridge’s 289-foot truss sections and date to the span’s original construction in the 1950s,” according to MTC.

Meanwhile, a separate project was set to begin this week to conduct tests determining the bridge’s potential lifespan — part of a plan to review state-run bridges over the next year.

Assemblymember Marc Levine has also floated the idea of building a new bridge.

RPD and city staff are working with Caltrans and the CHP “to identify solutions to these problems that have only become worse with the unforeseen bridge repairs,” the RPD stated.

“If you must use the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge, please be patient and remain on the freeway to approach the bridge,” RPD said.

Courtesy of The Richmond Standard

Posts by Courtesy of The Richmond Standard

Black History

HISTORY MADE: Keisha Lance Bottoms Becomes First Black Woman Elected Governor in American History

ATLANTA DAILY WORLD — History has been made in Georgia. Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta, has been elected governor of Georgia, becoming the first Black woman in American history to win the highest executive office in any state.

Published

5 days ago

November 5, 2026

Post News Group

Keisha Lance Bottoms during her 2026 Democratic gubernatorial primary victory speech. Photo: Sikis2021 / Wikimedia Commons.

History has been made in Georgia. Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta, has been elected governor of Georgia, becoming the first Black woman in American history to win the highest executive office in any state.

Bottoms’ victory over Republican businessman Rick Jackson represents a defining moment in American politics, breaking a barrier that has stood since the nation’s founding and placing Georgia at the center of a historic political transformation.

For generations, Black women have played a critical role in American democracy, organizing communities, leading movements, mobilizing voters and shaping public policy. Yet despite their contributions, no Black woman had ever been elected governor of a U.S. state.

Until now.

Bottoms’ election also makes her the first woman and first Black person elected governor of Georgia, a state whose political history has been deeply shaped by slavery, segregation, the civil rights movement and the long struggle for equal representation.

Her victory carries particular significance in a state where Black women have been among the most influential forces in voter registration, political organizing and Democratic electoral success.

A fifth-generation Georgian, Bottoms previously served as Atlanta’s 60th mayor from 2018 to 2022. During her administration, she led the city through the COVID-19 pandemic, nationwide protests over racial injustice and a period of significant economic and population growth.

Following her time as mayor, Bottoms served as a senior adviser in President Joe Biden’s administration before returning to Georgia politics to pursue the governorship.

Her campaign focused on expanding access to health care, strengthening public education, increasing wages and addressing the rising cost of living. She also advocated for expanding Medicaid, raising Georgia’s minimum wage to $15 an hour and increasing compensation for teachers and other public employees.

Bottoms faced Jackson, a wealthy health care executive who invested heavily in his campaign and positioned himself as a political outsider. The contest drew national attention as Democrats sought to reclaim the Georgia governor’s office after more than two decades of Republican control.

The historic nature of Bottoms’ victory extends well beyond party politics.

Georgia, once at the center of some of America’s most consequential civil rights battles, has now elected a Black woman to lead its state government. It is a milestone that reflects generations of political participation, organizing and leadership by Black Georgians.

For Atlanta, the moment is especially significant. A former mayor of the city that helped shape the modern civil rights movement will now lead the entire state.

Bottoms’ election opens a new chapter in Georgia’s political history and establishes a milestone that will be remembered far beyond the 2026 election.

For continuing election coverage and results, visit AtlantaDailyWorld.com/election26.