Modesto closes Pelandale bridge over Highway 99

City officials closed the Pelandale Avenue bridge spanning Highway 99 in north Modesto on Friday after a 150-foot section of a water main underneath nearby Salida Boulevard failed, releasing a torrent of water.

Public Works Director Bill Sandhu said the leak may have washed out some of the dirt underneath Salida Boulevard, which could make the roadway unsafe for cars and trucks coming off the bridge or entering the bridge from the boulevard. The city also closed a few hundred feet of Salida Boulevard where the water main failed.

Officials with Dokken Construction, the project’s designer, were on scene early Friday afternoon to assess the problem. The plan was for workers to dig up parts of the pavement to check the soil. Sandhu said the bridge and that section of Salida Boulevard could be closed for as long as two weeks, depending upon the weather, as workers repair the damage.

Motorists are asked to check www.sr99pelandale.org for updates.

Sandhu stressed the Pelandale bridge was not affected by the leak, and the roughly $55 million project remains on time and on budget. He said Highway 99’s Pelandale exits will remain open, but he advised highway drivers to use the nearby Kiernan and Standiford avenue exits.

Construction workers discovered the leak about 7:30 a.m. Friday. Workers rerouted the water from the burst water main. Officials said the nearby Baymont Inn & Suites did not have water for about an hour as the water was being rerouted.

Sandhu said about 150 feet of the water main failed. He said the main is an older one and was slated to be replaced. Work on the new water main has not yet been completed.

Modesto is building a new Pelandale interchange at Highway 99, which includes the bridge. Workers demolished the old bridge over the summer, and motorists have been using the new bridge as work continues on the interchange. The project is expected to be done by the end of the year. The new interchange will have twice the capacity of the old interchange, which opened in 1970 when Modesto’s population was about a third of what it is today.

This story was originally published March 4, 2016 at 4:47 PM with the headline "Modesto closes Pelandale bridge over Highway 99."