First 6 pontoons float today in Tacoma
The first six pontoons for the State Route 520 bridge are ready to float out of a construction facility in Tacoma today, marking a major milestone toward replacing the aging and vulnerable floating bridge.
Crews will tow pairs of pontoons out of Concrete Technology Corporation on high tides over the next 3 days and be readied for the next round of construction.
The completed pontoons are the first of 77 of various sizes needed for a new six-lane floating bridge. A total of 44 pontoons will be built in Tacoma and 33 in Aberdeen.
The Washington State Department of Transportation said in May that repairs had to be made on four pontoons under construction locally. Those pontoons had to have concrete removed, additional rebar added, and new concrete poured where it had cracked and flaked after post-tensioning tests.
Pontoons were repaired in June and July after cracks were discovered, and crews are preparing to float them into Grays Harbor and tow them to Lake Washington this summer.
