13 hours ago
Demolition begins on Sacramento's faulty Del Rio Trail bridge over I-5
Sacramento's bad bridge is coming down. Demolition work is now underway on the Del Rio Trail Bridge that crosses Interstate 5, connecting the Land Park neighborhood with the Sacramento River Bike Trail.
We first revealed last September that inspectors found the bridge was improperly built with lightweight concrete and rebar. The City of Sacramento is forcing the bridge builder to pay the cost of tearing it down and starting over.
At night, crews are working to remove the pavement, which is forcing several lanes of the freeway to be shut down and is causing a big traffic backup. It's also creating some late-night noise for nearby neighbors.
The multi-million dollar bridge was designed to allow bicyclists and pedestrians a safe path to cross the freeway without using city streets.
Sacramento city officials held a grand opening celebration in May 2024, but the bridge was never opened to the public and has been fenced off all this time.
Trail users are frustrated with the delay.
"I'd like to see this thing opened up because you avoid so much traffic going over here," bicyclist Will Wagoner said.
Wagoner is encouraged to see crews fixing the bridge blunder, and he's hopeful it will finally be finished soon.
"This is a little bit positive," he said of the demolition work. "At least they're on the bridge. If they have to demo it, then just get it over with and we can move on."
The City of Sacramento said that work is scheduled to be completed by the end of the year.
