Concrete is going down on the new Newell Road Bridge. The span connecting Palo Alto to East Palo Alto could reopen well before its original March 2027 target.
The City of East Palo Alto said on X on Tuesday, Sept. 8, that Granite Construction crews are pouring concrete in phases on the replacement bridge over San Francisquito Creek. The city said the bridge will reopen after the concrete cures but did not give a specific date.
The bridge has been closed since May 18, forcing drivers to detour via University Avenue or Embarcadero Road. The original closure notice listed the span as shut through March 27, 2027. A reopening before that date would cut months off the timeline, though no revised schedule has been confirmed.
Replacing a 115-year-old bridge
The old bridge dated to 1911. Its replacement is the first major piece of a regional flood-control effort along San Francisquito Creek. The project aims to protect neighborhoods in Palo Alto, East Palo Alto and Menlo Park from a repeat of the 1998 flood, which caused major damage across the area.
The $16.12 million project is funded primarily by the Highway Bridge Program. Palo Alto is leading construction in partnership with East Palo Alto, Santa Clara Valley Water District and the San Francisquito Creek Joint Powers Authority.
The new bridge will be about 20 feet wider and 4 feet longer than the old one, at 80 feet total. It includes 10-foot vehicle travel lanes, two 4-foot shoulders, sidewalks, crosswalks, curb ramps and drainage improvements, according to Palo Alto Online.
Construction officially began June 1 after a May 21 groundbreaking ceremony. In late May, as work got underway, Crescent Park resident Thomas Rindfleisch, a longtime flood-control advocate, told Palo Alto Online the project was "an example of the community coming together and, with the state and federal government, making a decision that will finally get something constructed."
The Newell Bridge is the first piece of the broader Reach 2 flood-control program, which extends upstream to the Pope-Chaucer bridge in Palo Alto's Crescent Park neighborhood.
