On May 27, the Metropolitan Expressway Company opened to the press the construction site of the Daishi Bridge (Ota-ku, Tokyo to Kawasaki City, Kanagawa Prefecture) on the No. 1 Haneda Line, where bridge renewal work is underway.
As previously reported, the No. 1 Haneda Line is closed between the Haneda Line Heiwajima Exit and Tokai JCT and the Yokohane Line Daishi Exit for two weeks from May 27, 5:00 to June 10, 5:00 due to this renewal work. The day of our visit was the first day of the closure.
Mr. Takayuki Noami, Director of the Project Promotion Department (Kanagawa and Saitama Districts), Metropolitan Expressway Renewal and Construction Bureau, explained the future process: “The bridge girders at the ends will be cut and removed 5 to 6 m at a time” on June 27 to 28, the current bridge will be slid after the evening of June 28, and the new bridge will be slid to the main line position on June 29. After that, he explained that the end sections will be treated, aligned, and welded to the piers around the morning of June 4, and that the road closure will be lifted at 5:00 a.m. on June 10 after paving, demarcation lines, inspection, testing, and safety checks are completed.
Since the route is a trunk line connecting Tokyo and Kanagawa, traffic congestion was expected to be quite heavy in advance, but the first day of the event, which was a Saturday, seemed to flow surprisingly smoothly. When we asked Mr. Noami about this point, he replied that the traffic was slightly less congested than expected, partly due to the large amount of media coverage in advance, but that heavy congestion was expected after the 29th, a weekday, and he asked for continued cooperation (such as detours and use of public transportation).
Since the area near the Daishi toll booth, which was open to the press, was far from the bridge girders, we moved to the Daishi Bridge on the parallel public road to take a look at the bridge. As Mr. Noami commented, work was in progress to separate the existing bridge girders using hydraulic shovels. At this point, the work does not look like much, but it seems to have attracted a lot of attention, and many passersby were taking pictures with their smart phones and other devices.
© Source travel watch