Politics & Government

PHOTOS: First 520 Bridge Pontoon Travels to Lake Washington

The 11,000-ton pontoon took a two-day journey from Grays Harbor to Lake Washington via tugboat.

The first of three massive longitudinal pontoons for the new State Route 520 floating bridge was successfully towed from Grays Harbor to Lake Washington on Saturday.

The 11,000-ton pontoon is the first in a series of three longitudinal pontoons constructed in Aberdeen for the first cycle of the project. It measures 360 feet long, 75 feet wide and 29 feet tall.

The pontoon left Grays Harbor Thursday morning and arrived in Seattle's Shilshoe Bay on Saturday evening, where crews carefully guided it through the Ballard Locks and the rest of the Lake Washington Ship Canal (see photos and video).

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A total of 77 pontoons will be used to construct the new floating bridge, which is expected to open to drivers in 2014.


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