Long Beach International Gateway Bridge

The Long Beach International Gateway Bridge, a 2,680 m long bridge with a main span of 330 m, replaced the Gerald Desmond Bridge with a modern anti-seismic infrastructure. The new bridge represents a strategic hub for the city and the port of Long Beach improving traffic flows using advanced thecnical and organizational solutions. 

The Gerald Desmond cable-stayed bridge, built in the 1960s, become the symbol of Long Beach. However, since it could no longer support the ever-increasing volumes of traffic, the bridge have been demolished. 

The project was particularly complex from a technical and organisational point of view because it involved keeping road and shipping traffic to and from the port open throughout the duration of the project; there were also plans to move numerous underground utilities and find solutions to significant obstacles, such as a thermal power plant, numerous oil extraction wells and an operational railway line.

The construction of the Long Beach International Gateway became necessary also due to the increase in traffic to and from the Port of Long Beach, approximately 1200 vehicles/hour (peak). In fact, the Port of Long Beach shares the national record with the Port of Los Angeles for the volume of goods in transit. 

The project, financed with state funds (the Port of Long Beach, Caltrans and Metro) and with a contribution from federal funds, consists of two approach viaducts along the east-west route, and a main cable-stayed bridge that crosses the main channel, connecting the offshore area with the inner quays. 
The project involved:

• 320 foundation piles (with diameter ranging from 2.5 m, 1.6 m and 1.5 m), up to 50 m deep and cast on site. The piles were constructed using an oscillator and with temporary casing
• A cable-stayed bridge with two main octagonal hollow towers, about 160 m high, with a central span of 330 m, and two side spans about 150 m long. 
• The steel load-bearing structure for the deck was pre-assembled in segments on site, and then raised by a hoisting system, located on the previously positioned blocks that were already held under tension by the final stays.
• The use of pontoons, with the aim of transporting, to be positioned on site, the segments located directly on the access channel to the port.