Officials: Freeway Ramp Can Be Repaired

Workers demolish a section of Highway 580 in Oakland, Calif., Monday, April 30, 2007, that was damaged after a tanker carrying gasoline exploded on Sunday. The elevated section of highway that carries motorists from the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge, seen at background left, to a number of freeways was destroyed early Sunday when the heat of a burning gasoline tanker truck weakened part of one overpass, crumpling it onto another. (AP Photo/Dino Vournas) (Dino Vournas - AP)

OAKLAND, Calif. -- A highway ramp shut down by the collapse of an overpass near the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge won't have to be rebuilt from scratch and could reopen within 10 days, the governor said Wednesday.

The ramp connecting two interstate highways was blocked Sunday morning when a burning tanker truck brought down the overpass. Crews finished clearing debris from the collapse Tuesday.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said the ramp connecting westbound Interstate 80 to southbound Interstate 880 could be fully open to traffic in as little as seven days and as many as 10.

"Progress on repairing the collapsed freeway connectors is moving at lightning speed," he said in a statement, after appearing at a news conference in Sacramento with state transportation officials.

Investigators found that the steel girders holding up the lower ramp had warped but remained structurally sound and could be straightened, California Department of Transportation spokesman Bob Haus said.

The overpass connecting eastbound Interstate 80 to eastbound Interstate 580 was destroyed by the tanker explosion, however, and will have to be replaced.

The state Transportation Department does not know how long it will take to complete the larger reconstruction of Interstate 580, which connects San Francisco to its eastern suburbs, said Director Will Kempton.

The Federal Highway Administration has agreed to pay for much of the repairs to both sections of freeway, Schwarzenegger said.

The state also will seek federal reimbursement for money it spent to make public transit more available and to patrol roadways during the repairs _ already nearly $9 million.

The agency has not decided whether it also will seek reimbursement from the owner of the tanker truck, Sabek Transportation, or driver James Mosqueda, Kempton said. The agency typically does so when drivers damage state highways, he said.

Meanwhile, California Highway Patrol documents released Wednesday showed that the company was cited at least six times for safety violations since August 2006, but that the company had maintained a "satisfactory" safety rating.

Sabek officials did not return calls seeking comment on Wednesday.