Bay Bridge Closure To Clog Bay Area; BART, Muni, AC Transit To Increase Service; Jam-Packed Roads, Trains, Buses Expected

The Bay Bridge closure will affect people throughout the Bay Area.

Highly crowded roadways and jam-packed buses, trains and ferries will occur beginning Wednesday night.

The San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge is being shut to traffic. Thankfully, it will ease early next week when a new span opens.

The 6.4 million dollar Bay Bridge project will help the 280,000 vehicles using it each day...but for now, they have to find help elsewhere.

The California Highway Patrol will began blocking traffic on and off of the Bay Bridge at about 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, and plans to re-open at 5 A.M. on Tuesday. It may be opened earlier if work is done early.

"We encourage everyone to plan ahead and allow more time to get where they need to go," Bay Bridge spokesman Andrew Gordon said.

This is the fourth time in seven years the Bay Bridge has been closed during Labor Day Weekend, when traffic is lighter.

BART, AC Transit, and Muni will increase their service during the Bay Bridge closure. BART trains will run 24 hours starting Wednesday night through the holiday weekend. Bus and ferry service will also be increased.

BART spokesman Jim Allison said, "People should do a little research and load up their Clipper Card ahead of time so they don't have to wait in line to buy tickets because we expect very busy ridership days."

One thing to note is that BART won't provide overnight service from Monday night into Tuesday morning because it needs to close its tracks in order to perform maintenance work and inspections. BART is expecting the Bay Bridge to be reopened by then.

"Be patient, wherever you're going," John Goodwin, spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission, told press. "We saw this same thing during the bridge closures in 2007 and 2009. The Bay Area keeps moving. It just becomes more sluggish."

The new Bay Bridge span will be opened late Monday or early Tuesday; crews are painting and adding the final details.

People planning trips throughout the Bay Area over the Labor Day weekend should check 511.org for alternative routes and transportation methods than the Bay Bridge, officials said.

What do you think of the Bay Bridge being closed? Sound off in the comments below!