The past two days have marked significant milestones in the

construction of the Bay Bridge's new eastern span, with the lighting Monday

evening of catwalks leading to the bridge's tower following a day after the

last sections of the deck arrived from China.

   The self-anchored suspension span connecting Yerba Buena Island to

Oakland appears set to open sometime in fall 2013, Caltrans spokesman Bart

Ney said at a news conference in Oakland this afternoon.

   Caltrans officials took media members on a tour today of the new

span, including the base of one of the four 1,060-foot-long catwalks, where

construction lights were switched on for the first time this evening.

   The lights were put in place to allow construction crews to work

at night to prepare for the placement of the span's main cable in early 2012,

Ney said.

   The night work is recommended for the installation and measurement

of the cables since heat from the sun can alter their length, he said.

   The lights will allow Bay Area residents to "start to see what

this bridge is actually going to look like" when it is completed, Ney said.

   The lights are the same ones used by crews on the construction of

the new Carquinez Bridge, which was completed in 2003.

   The switching on of the lights came after the final four deck

sections of the eastern span arrived Sunday on a ship from Shanghai, China,

where they were being made.

   The sections, which weigh a total of more than 5,000 tons, will be

put in place over the next couple of months, filling in a gap in the bridge

where the cables will connect in the structure, Ney said.

   There have been years of delays and cost overruns in the planning

and building of the new eastern span, which was commissioned following the

1989 Loma Prieta earthquake that collapsed a section of the upper deck of the

bridge.

   But since the first deck sections began arriving from China in

January 2010, the $6.3 billion project has been humming along toward an

opening date in the second half of 2013, possibly in time for the America's

Cup sailing race being held in San Francisco that September, Ney said.

   "We're going to work very closely with America's Cup

(organizers)," he said, but added that "seismic safety is our primary

concern" in determining when exactly to open the bridge.

   The construction will also require the closure of westbound

traffic on the bridge for a couple of days in early 2012 -- the date is yet

to be determined -- while crews create a new detour for traffic coming onto

the bridge toward San Francisco, Ney said.

   During the construction, Caltrans officials are continuing to urge

drivers on the bridge to focus on the road instead of the new landmark being

built right beside it.

   "The bridge is so large, there's no effective way to screen it, so

getting the information out to the public is the best way" to prevent

crashes, Ney said.

   Once the new eastern span is completed and opened, the process

will not be complete since crews will still have to dismantle the old span, a

process that could take at least a few years, Ney said.

   For the latest updates on the construction of the new span and a

timeline of upcoming milestones, visit www.baybridgeinfo.org.