The Vincent Thomas Bridge Badly Needs A Revamp. Here's How Residents Can Weigh In On How Best To Do It

The historic Vincent Thomas Bridge serves as the main gateway to the Port of Los Angeles. But after 60 years, heavy truck traffic has worn down the bridge’s deck.

Now the bridge needs a makeover and Caltrans wants the public to weigh in on the project’s environmental impact.

Two in-person and virtual meetings are scheduled to receive input on the project's draft Environmental Impact Report (EIR). An EIR is a full in-depth study of potential effects a proposed project would have on the environment.

How to participate

The meetings will take place on May 30 at the Wilmington Recreation Center and on June 13 at Peck Park Community Center. All meetings will be offered in English and Spanish.

What people have already said

The first public hearing happened virtually on May 1 and you can rewatch the video here. 

Some community members have already expressed concerns about other road projects nearby and how those would affect traffic along the detour routes. Residents also brought up the Harry Bridges/Alameda Street corridor, which many described as already "in bad shape" and would only deteriorate with more heavy truck traffic. A Caltrans map shows that corridor has scheduled road projects that would conflict with the Vincent Thomas Bridge revamp.

Now that Caltrans has released the draft of their EIR, the public has 90 days to provide feedback — the last day being July 15. Caltrans will be hosting in-person and virtual meetings before the 90 days are over to gather public input.

The backstory

Caltrans announced in 2023 that the deck needs to be replaced and since then, the agency has held public meetings to explain how construction work would affect the daily lives of neighboring communities.

During construction the bridge would need to be fully or partially closed for at least two years and traffic would be redirected onto side streets.

The communities of San Pedro and Wilmington have raised concerns about added traffic through their neighborhoods, such as wearing down the alternate roads and an increase in pollution. 

Changes to construction timeline

The draft EIR reveals that replacing the deck will take longer than previously anticipated depending on the stage of construction.

Originally, a single-phase construction or full closure of the bridge to replace the deck would have taken between nine to 12 months. Now Caltrans says a full closure could take between between one to three years.

Another option has been added that would leave the bridge fully open during the daytime and closed at night from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. That phase would take approximately two years.

About the EIR

The EIR is available online and in-person at several locations for people to review. They include:

• Billie Jean King Main Library
• San Pedro Branch Library
• Wilmington Branch Library
• Los Angeles Harbor College Library
• Harbor City - Harbor Gateway Branch Library
• Carson Library

Go deeper: Vincent Thomas Bridge Will Get A Makeover And Caltrans Wants Public Input