How exciting, a huge engineering effort is happening here in the Bay Area and it has global network implications. As the California Department of Transportation (CalTrans) replaces a major section of the San Francisco Bay Bridge (to make way for the new bridge) the fiber conduit that runs over the bridge must be relocated.
 CalTrans Bay Bridge Conduit |
The conduit (seen on the left) is known as the CalTrans fiber optic cable system or “CalTrans Fibers”. It’s been providing dark fiber services for companies such as Qwest and MCI for over a decade and has wavelengths leased to hundreds of companies. It also carries IP services for some of the transpacific communication lines used by Tata Communications. |
Nothing has gone down or is broken, but it is fun for folks to understand that a bridge such as the Bay Bridge carries much more than cars.
CalTrans arranged to disconnect the fiber on the Bay Bridge between 11:00 p.m. Thursday September 3 (Pacific) and 06:00 AM Friday September 4. From what I understand, the work has been completed on schedule without a problem.
Great work CalTrans!
Tags: CalTrans, Fiber Systems, Internet