Highway 101 Eel River Bridge set for yearslong earthquake retrofit

A major bridge on Highway 101 may become a choke point on California’s North Coast until 2030.

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Last week, Caltrans demolished the first segment of the Eel River Bridge on Highway 101 in Humboldt County north of Rio Dell. The bridge is  in California that Caltrans must repair or replace to ensure they’re sturdy enough to withstand a large earthquake. 

Three segments of the bridge and its support structures are expected to fall by the end of the month, and a temporary rock berm by mid-October, Caltrans said in a Sept. 9 Facebook post. The last four segments will be seismically retrofitted instead of fully replaced, according to the California Environmental Quality Act.

“Work will continue outside the river channel through the winter, and crews are expected to begin installing piles for the new bridge next summer,” Caltrans said in the Facebook post. 

Despite the northbound side of the bridge being out of commission, the Highway 101 Eel River crossing has a parallel bridge, and Caltrans is shifting traffic in both directions to those lanes. Speeds will likely remain reduced, with lane disruptions and construction equipment slowing traffic.

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In August, the California Transportation Commission approved $69.8 million in spending to fund the project, Caltrans said in a news release. Nearly $62 million came from the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act of 2021, and the rest from California’s Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017. Construction is expected to wrap up by 2030.

Last week, locals took to Facebook to comment on the bridge demolition.

“It was a charming bridge….,” Kathi Edwards said on Facebook. “‘Good old days’ are over, and I guess we look forward to earthquake safe bridges from here on… and so I guess I shall be grateful.”