The Cypress Street Viaduct, often referred to as the Cypress Structure or the Cypress Freeway, was a 1.6-mile-long (2.5 km), raised two-deck, multi-lane (four lanes per tier) freeway constructed of reinforced concrete that was originally part of the Nimitz Freeway (State Route 17, and later, Interstate 880) in Oakland, California.
It officially opened to traffic on June 11, 1957, and was in use until October 17, 1989. At approximately 5:04 p.m. that day, a magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck the Bay Area, resulting in a large portion of the freeway's upper deck collapsing onto the lower deck. The collapse killed 42 people and resulted in the subsequent demolition of the structure.[1]
The double-decked viaduct was initially designed in 1949 by the City of Oakland as a way to ease traffic on local streets leading to the Bay Bridge, such as Cypress Street (which was California State Route 17 at the time). The route was partially chosen to displace perceived slums in West Oakland.[2]
The southernmost portion of the Cypress Street viaduct, which was designed as a central off ramp structure exiting at Market Street between Fifth and Sixth Streets to the Eighth Street/Seventh Street on/off ramps, was the first phase of the overall project completed in October 1955, by contractors Frederickson and Watson at a cost of $1.7 million. Construction on the second phase of the project, the double-decked viaduct portion (which started from Adeline Street in the south to the MacArthur Maze in the north), began in February 1956 by contractors Grove, Wilson, Shepard and Kruge at a cost of $8.3 million, bringing the total cost of the viaduct project to $10 million.[3] It was California's first double-decked freeway when it officially opened to traffic on June 11, 1957.[4][5]
Loma Prieta earthquake
On October 17, 1989, the portion of the structure from 16th Street north all the way to the MacArthur Maze collapsed during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, due to ground movement and structural flaws.
The collapsed Cypress Street Viaduct at the Northern end, near the corner of Cypress and 32nd Streets
When in use, the upper deck was used by southbound traffic, and the lower deck was used by northbound traffic. Some sections of the Cypress Street Viaduct were largely supported by two columns on either side, but some sections were only supported beneath by a single supporting column. The design was unable to survive the earthquake because the upper portions of the exterior columns were not tied by reinforcing to the lower columns, and the columns were not sufficiently ringed to prevent bursting (similar to Hanshin Expressway in Kobe, Japan). At the time of its design, such structures were not analyzed as a whole, and it appears that large structure motion contributed to the collapse. It was built on filled land on top of bay clay; filled land is highly susceptible to soil settlement during an earthquake, and bay clay exhibits larger ground motion. A little bit of earthquake reinforcement was added to the Cypress Street Viaduct in 1977.
After the earthquake stopped (with no aftershock), local residents and workers began crawling into and climbing upon the shattered structure with the goal of rescuing those left alive. Many were saved, some only by amputation of trapped limbs.[6] The collapse of the upper tier onto the lower tier resulted in 42 fatalities—while this represented two-thirds of the total quake death toll of 63,[7] it was a magnitude lower than initially feared; with San Francisco and Oakland in the World Series, many would-be commuters in both cities had left work early or stayed late to watch the upcoming Game 3, and as a result traffic on the viaduct was far lighter at the time of the quake than it normally would have been.[8]
After the viaduct was torn down, Cypress Street was renamed Mandela Parkway, in honor of Nelson Mandela, and a landscaped median strip was planted where the viaduct once stood. Before reconstruction occurred, the viaduct ended at the 7th Street exit on the southern end, with the two roadways going over 7th Street, while the southbound exit off the MacArthur Maze onto Cypress Street at 32nd Street remained open to local traffic on the northern end.
Reconstruction around West Oakland
Cypress Freeway Memorial Park
In 1997, the Nimitz Freeway was rerouted to loop around the area using a largely ground-level design with more conventional single-level viaduct. The space was mainly taken from a railroad yard which was relocated. The exit at 8th Street was eliminated, a southbound exit near 7th and Union Street and a single northbound and southbound exit at 7th Street, near the Port of Oakland was constructed also providing access via Frontage Road to West Grand Avenue and the Oakland Army Base on Maritime Street, before a viaduct-type interchange splitting traffic to the Bay Bridge via Grand Avenue and also northbound to the Eastshore Freeway. This also realigned the ramp from I-80 west to I-580 east/I-880 south which fully completed the Cypress Freeway Realignment in 2001.
During construction of the new section of the Nimitz Freeway, a team of archaeologists made many interesting discoveries about the people who lived in West Oakland in the 19th century.[9]
Due to cost overruns, the costs of the replacement freeway doubled from initial estimates of $650 million to $1.2 billion ($250 million per mile) making the five-mile freeway replacement the most expensive project in the state's history at the time. (It would be subsequently overshadowed by the northbound addition of the Benicia–Martinez Bridge and the Eastern span replacement of the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge.) The cost overruns were mainly due to the opposition to replacing the highway on the site of the one partially destroyed in 1989, therefore requiring the purchase of land and property from Southern Pacific Railroad and Amtrak (moving part of the rail yard, which in turn caused the earthquake-damaged 16th Street Amtrak Station to be closed and replaced with two Amtrak stations in Jack London Square and Emeryville), the United States Postal Service (having to replace a parking lot with a parking garage), and the U.S. Army (the new route went through the Oakland Army Base),[10] as well as replacing BART support beams.
Due to improper design of rebar placement, the support columns broke with ease, sending the structure down. Photo by H.G. Wilshire, USGS
The collapsed Cypress Street Viaduct seen from ground level. Note the detachment of upper vertical elements from lower and the lack of reinforcement at the point of detachment.
Portion of the collapsed Cypress Street Viaduct after the Loma Prieta earthquake; the collapse resulted in 42 fatalities.
A pile of rebar and concrete from the collapsed Cypress Street Viaduct
^Sarah Schindler, Architectural Exclusion: Discrimination and Segregation Through Physical Design of the Built Environment, 124 YALE L.J. 1934 (2015). citing DOUGLAS MASSEY & NANCY DENTON, AMERICAN APARTHEID (1998); see generally Fed. Highway Admin. Envtl. Justice Case Studies, Cyprus Freeway Replacement Project, U.S. DEP’T TRANSP. (Aug. 29, 2011), [1].
^Travis, W. (January–February 1957). "Something New: Double-deck Freeway Viaducts In San Francisco and Oakland" (PDF). California Highways and Public Works. Vol. 36, no. 1–2. pp. 31–35. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
^"A First: Initial Double-deck Freeway In Oakland Is Opened" (PDF). California Highways and Public Works. Vol. 36, no. 7–8. July–August 1957. pp. 43–44, 51. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
^Booker, B. W. (March–April 1958). "Report From District IV: Pushed Toward Completion, Bay Area Freeway Network" (PDF). California Highways and Public Works. Vol. 37, no. 3–4. p. 14. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
^Holler, Scott; Vicki Sheff; Lorenzo Benet; Doris Bacon; Tom Cunneff; Michael Alexander; Kristina Johnson; Robin Micheli; Linda Witt (October 30, 1989). . People. 32 (18). Archived from the original on August 18, 2016.
^Eberhart-Phillips JE, Saunders TM, Robinson AL, Hatch DL, Parrish RG (June 1994). "Profile of mortality from the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake using coroner and medical examiner reports". Disasters. 18 (2): 160–70. doi:10.1111/j.1467-7717.1994.tb00298.x. PMID 8076160.
^Haberman, Clyde (April 13, 2014). "Promises of Preparedness Followed Devastating Earthquakes. And Yet". The New York Times.
^"Putting the "There" There: Historical Archaeologies of West Oakland". Retrieved November 3, 2007.
^Jackson, Brett. "Replacing Oakland's Cypress Freeway". Public Roads. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cypress Street Viaduct.
Miracle on Interstate 880 (1993), TV movie fictionalization and re-enactment of events at the Cypress Structure.
Loma Prieta Earthquake, ca. 1989 (03/2003 – ). National Archives and Records Administration – ARC Identifier 951729 / Local Identifier 311-NETC-39 – Department of Homeland Security. Federal Emergency Management Agency. National Emergency Training Center.
Construction of the Cypress Viaduct (part 1 of 5) (1950s), Caltrans video showing the progress of construction and engineering methods used.
cypress, street, viaduct, often, referred, cypress, structure, cypress, freeway, mile, long, raised, deck, multi, lane, four, lanes, tier, freeway, constructed, reinforced, concrete, that, originally, part, nimitz, freeway, state, route, later, interstate, oak. The Cypress Street Viaduct often referred to as the Cypress Structure or the Cypress Freeway was a 1 6 mile long 2 5 km raised two deck multi lane four lanes per tier freeway constructed of reinforced concrete that was originally part of the Nimitz Freeway State Route 17 and later Interstate 880 in Oakland California Cypress Street ViaductCypress Freeway Nimitz FreewayRoute of the viaduct in relation to modern roadsRoute informationMaintained by CaltransLength1 78 mi 2 86 km ExistedJune 11 1957 October 17 1989History1957 1984 as SR 17 1984 1989 as I 880Major junctionsNorth endI 80 I 580 in OaklandSouth endMarket Street at 7th Street in OaklandLocationCountryUnited StatesStateCaliforniaCountiesAlamedaHighway systemInterstate Highway SystemMain Auxiliary Suffixed Business FutureState highways in CaliforniaInterstate US State Scenic History Pre 1964 Unconstructed Deleted FreewaysIt replaced an earlier single deck viaduct constructed in the 1930s as one of the approaches to the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge It was located along Cypress Street between 7th Street and Interstate 80 in the West Oakland neighborhood It officially opened to traffic on June 11 1957 and was in use until October 17 1989 At approximately 5 04 p m that day a magnitude 6 9 earthquake struck the Bay Area resulting in a large portion of the freeway s upper deck collapsing onto the lower deck The collapse killed 42 people and resulted in the subsequent demolition of the structure 1 The Cypress Freeway Memorial Park is located in Oakland at 14th Street and Mandela Parkway Contents 1 Construction 2 Loma Prieta earthquake 3 Reconstruction around West Oakland 4 Exit list 5 Gallery 6 Similar structures damaged by earthquakes 7 See also 8 References 9 External linksConstruction EditThe double decked viaduct was initially designed in 1949 by the City of Oakland as a way to ease traffic on local streets leading to the Bay Bridge such as Cypress Street which was California State Route 17 at the time The route was partially chosen to displace perceived slums in West Oakland 2 The southernmost portion of the Cypress Street viaduct which was designed as a central off ramp structure exiting at Market Street between Fifth and Sixth Streets to the Eighth Street Seventh Street on off ramps was the first phase of the overall project completed in October 1955 by contractors Frederickson and Watson at a cost of 1 7 million Construction on the second phase of the project the double decked viaduct portion which started from Adeline Street in the south to the MacArthur Maze in the north began in February 1956 by contractors Grove Wilson Shepard and Kruge at a cost of 8 3 million bringing the total cost of the viaduct project to 10 million 3 It was California s first double decked freeway when it officially opened to traffic on June 11 1957 4 5 Loma Prieta earthquake EditOn October 17 1989 the portion of the structure from 16th Street north all the way to the MacArthur Maze collapsed during the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake due to ground movement and structural flaws The collapsed Cypress Street Viaduct at the Northern end near the corner of Cypress and 32nd Streets When in use the upper deck was used by southbound traffic and the lower deck was used by northbound traffic Some sections of the Cypress Street Viaduct were largely supported by two columns on either side but some sections were only supported beneath by a single supporting column The design was unable to survive the earthquake because the upper portions of the exterior columns were not tied by reinforcing to the lower columns and the columns were not sufficiently ringed to prevent bursting similar to Hanshin Expressway in Kobe Japan At the time of its design such structures were not analyzed as a whole and it appears that large structure motion contributed to the collapse It was built on filled land on top of bay clay filled land is highly susceptible to soil settlement during an earthquake and bay clay exhibits larger ground motion A little bit of earthquake reinforcement was added to the Cypress Street Viaduct in 1977 After the earthquake stopped with no aftershock local residents and workers began crawling into and climbing upon the shattered structure with the goal of rescuing those left alive Many were saved some only by amputation of trapped limbs 6 The collapse of the upper tier onto the lower tier resulted in 42 fatalities while this represented two thirds of the total quake death toll of 63 7 it was a magnitude lower than initially feared with San Francisco and Oakland in the World Series many would be commuters in both cities had left work early or stayed late to watch the upcoming Game 3 and as a result traffic on the viaduct was far lighter at the time of the quake than it normally would have been 8 After the viaduct was torn down Cypress Street was renamed Mandela Parkway in honor of Nelson Mandela and a landscaped median strip was planted where the viaduct once stood Before reconstruction occurred the viaduct ended at the 7th Street exit on the southern end with the two roadways going over 7th Street while the southbound exit off the MacArthur Maze onto Cypress Street at 32nd Street remained open to local traffic on the northern end Reconstruction around West Oakland Edit Cypress Freeway Memorial Park In 1997 the Nimitz Freeway was rerouted to loop around the area using a largely ground level design with more conventional single level viaduct The space was mainly taken from a railroad yard which was relocated The exit at 8th Street was eliminated a southbound exit near 7th and Union Street and a single northbound and southbound exit at 7th Street near the Port of Oakland was constructed also providing access via Frontage Road to West Grand Avenue and the Oakland Army Base on Maritime Street before a viaduct type interchange splitting traffic to the Bay Bridge via Grand Avenue and also northbound to the Eastshore Freeway This also realigned the ramp from I 80 west to I 580 east I 880 south which fully completed the Cypress Freeway Realignment in 2001 During construction of the new section of the Nimitz Freeway a team of archaeologists made many interesting discoveries about the people who lived in West Oakland in the 19th century 9 Due to cost overruns the costs of the replacement freeway doubled from initial estimates of 650 million to 1 2 billion 250 million per mile making the five mile freeway replacement the most expensive project in the state s history at the time It would be subsequently overshadowed by the northbound addition of the Benicia Martinez Bridge and the Eastern span replacement of the San Francisco Oakland Bay Bridge The cost overruns were mainly due to the opposition to replacing the highway on the site of the one partially destroyed in 1989 therefore requiring the purchase of land and property from Southern Pacific Railroad and Amtrak moving part of the rail yard which in turn caused the earthquake damaged 16th Street Amtrak Station to be closed and replaced with two Amtrak stations in Jack London Square and Emeryville the United States Postal Service having to replace a parking lot with a parking garage and the U S Army the new route went through the Oakland Army Base 10 as well as replacing BART support beams Exit list EditThe entire route was in Oakland Alameda County mikmDestinationsNotesMarket Street Harbor TerminalNorthbound exit and southbound entrance exit still exists as Exit 42B8th Street Cypress StreetNorthbound exit7th Street at Kirkham StreetSouthbound entrance Northbound exit added in 1997 by West Grand Ave 14th Street Downtown OaklandNorthbound entrance and southbound exitCypress Street Peralta StreetSouthbound exitCypress Street at 32nd StreetNorthbound entrance I 580 I 80 east San RafaelNorthbound exit and southbound entrance Realigned in 1997 opened in 1998 completed in 2001 I 80 west San Francisco Berkeley SacramentoNorthern terminus northbound westbound exit and southbound eastbound entrance Realigned in 1997 1 000 mi 1 609 km 1 000 km 0 621 mi Incomplete accessGallery Edit Due to improper design of rebar placement the support columns broke with ease sending the structure down Photo by H G Wilshire USGS The collapsed Cypress Street Viaduct seen from ground level Note the detachment of upper vertical elements from lower and the lack of reinforcement at the point of detachment Portion of the collapsed Cypress Street Viaduct after the Loma Prieta earthquake the collapse resulted in 42 fatalities A pile of rebar and concrete from the collapsed Cypress Street Viaduct Rep Pete Stark Mayor Lionel J Wilson President George H W Bush and Rep George Miller inspect Cypress Street Viaduct damage Under construction February 8 1957 Under construction January 19 1957Similar structures damaged by earthquakes EditAlaskan Way Viaduct Central Freeway Embarcadero Freeway Hanshin ExpresswaySee also Edit California Roads portal San Francisco Bay Area portal Interstate 280 California the only remaining similar freeway in the Bay Area References Edit Cypress Viaduct Freeway Archived from the original on July 7 2009 Sarah Schindler Architectural Exclusion Discrimination and Segregation Through Physical Design of the Built Environment 124 YALE L J 1934 2015 citing DOUGLAS MASSEY amp NANCY DENTON AMERICAN APARTHEID 1998 see generally Fed Highway Admin Envtl Justice Case Studies Cyprus Freeway Replacement Project U S DEP T TRANSP Aug 29 2011 1 Travis W January February 1957 Something New Double deck Freeway Viaducts In San Francisco and Oakland PDF California Highways and Public Works Vol 36 no 1 2 pp 31 35 Retrieved January 16 2019 A First Initial Double deck Freeway In Oakland Is Opened PDF California Highways and Public Works Vol 36 no 7 8 July August 1957 pp 43 44 51 Retrieved January 16 2019 Booker B W March April 1958 Report From District IV Pushed Toward Completion Bay Area Freeway Network PDF California Highways and Public Works Vol 37 no 3 4 p 14 Retrieved January 16 2019 Holler Scott Vicki Sheff Lorenzo Benet Doris Bacon Tom Cunneff Michael Alexander Kristina Johnson Robin Micheli Linda Witt October 30 1989 A City Trembled Its People Held People 32 18 Archived from the original on August 18 2016 Eberhart Phillips JE Saunders TM Robinson AL Hatch DL Parrish RG June 1994 Profile of mortality from the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake using coroner and medical examiner reports Disasters 18 2 160 70 doi 10 1111 j 1467 7717 1994 tb00298 x PMID 8076160 Haberman Clyde April 13 2014 Promises of Preparedness Followed Devastating Earthquakes And Yet The New York Times Putting the There There Historical Archaeologies of West Oakland Retrieved November 3 2007 Jackson Brett Replacing Oakland s Cypress Freeway Public Roads Retrieved May 29 2015 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Cypress Street Viaduct KML file edit help Template Attached KML Cypress Street ViaductKML is from Wikidata Miracle on Interstate 880 1993 TV movie fictionalization and re enactment of events at the Cypress Structure Loma Prieta Earthquake ca 1989 03 2003 National Archives and Records Administration ARC Identifier 951729 Local Identifier 311 NETC 39 Department of Homeland Security Federal Emergency Management Agency National Emergency Training Center Construction of the Cypress Viaduct part 1 of 5 1950s Caltrans video showing the progress of construction and engineering methods used Coordinates 37 49 00 N 122 17 22 W 37 8168 N 122 2895 W 37 8168 122 2895 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Cypress Street Viaduct amp oldid 1119815650, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
