With tens of thousands of drivers struggling with alternate routes around the closed Burlington Skyway Friday, two teams of engineers are now on site assessing the damage to the bridge.
Their verdict will determine how bad the damage is and how long the key artery for Golden Horseshoe commuter, holiday and commercial traffic will stay closed.
The early warnings are not promising.
"The bridge will likely be closed through the weekend," said Astrid Poei from the Ministry of Transportation.
'That will show us when we can open it and what the structural integrity of the bridge is'- Astrid Poei, Ministry of Transportation
The ministry anticipates that analysis to be completed this afternoon.
"That will show us when we can open it and what the structural integrity of the bridge is," Poei said.
The Toronto-bound Skyway bridge was closed Thursday after a dump truck crashed into scaffolding and part of the bridge structure late in the afternoon.
For drivers, the focus Friday is finding a way around the bottleneck.
City traffic teams were monitoring the flow in city streets and considering changing some traffic light timings on congested roads and suggesting some detours. Area highways and many streets through the centre of Hamilton were affected.
Assessing the damage
The teams of engineers are going to be looking for both direct and indirect damage to bridge components, said Samir Chidiac, professor in the Faculty of Engineering at McMaster University.
"There's a lot of structural elements that are interconnected," Chidiac said. "Depending which elements got damaged, they'll be assessing how critical are the contribution of these elements to the integrity of the bridge."
Bridge design counts on the ability of each element to bear some of the load and carry it to the foundation.
Chidiac said the bridge has been recently analyzed, so as long as a structural model exists, engineers could assess the consequences of whatever elements have been damaged.
"Can they be repaired or do they have to be replaced?" he said.
Delays caused by this crash have lead to slow morning drives all over Hamilton. (Ontario Provincial Police)
No matter how far-reaching the damage, the team working cannot afford not to check it, he said. Even the collective angst of the region's commuters and the pressures for a fast re-opening should not factor in the engineers' assessment, he said.
"I can tell you, as an engineer, that doesn't come into the equation, political pressure," he said. "When it comes to life safety, we don't mess around."
Managing traffic
Much of the traffic was being diverted to Eastport Drive, which was totally clogged during the morning rush hour. City traffic staff were watching road cameras and driving Hamilton routes themselves to assess the traffic buildup. Some traffic lights may be adjusted to allow for more vehicles to move through a green light, said Dave Ferguson from the city.
"We're also looking at alternate routes that we may be able to use to move traffic through the city," Ferguson said.
The Ontario Provincial Police recommended Toronto-bound commuters take Red Hill Parkway to the Lincoln M. Alexander Parkway to Highway 403 instead. The Linc merge onto the 403 was backed up and the highway was slow down the escarpment and through the city.
Delays affected many other city streets as commuters from the east end tried to make it to the open 403. Cannon Street leading into York Blvd was jammed through the downtown.
Go Transit is reporting delays on many routes as a result of the closure. The agency's Route 12 bus, which travels from Niagara Falls to Toronto, is facing delays of up to an hour.
Hamilton Police were not actively directing vehicle traffic Friday. But spokeswoman Debbie McGreal-Dinning warned drivers to be alert.
"We recognize the significant increase of traffic in our city and advise that motorists need to expect delays," she said.
The Burlington Skyway closure has led to heavier traffic on Hamilton roads. (Samantha Craggs/CBC)
McGreal-Dinning added that commuters should not treat Hamilton city streets as an extension of the highway.
"We ask that they be cognizant of speed and spacing when transitioning from the highways to the main roads," she said.
The Skyway bridge closure is also affecting ship traffic through the Burlington canal.
Raising the lift bridge impacts traffic trying to navigate around the closure. The Hamilton Police Marine Unit said that lifts will be cut in half to just on the hour.
A slow commute
Commuters took to Twitter to commiserate about the traffic.
One Stoney Creek resident commuting to Oakville tweeted it had taken her more than 45 minutes to reach Eastport Drive, typically about a 15 minute trip.
Another woke up extra-early to account for the traffic.
If you have any pictures or stories to tell from today's commute, tweet or email us: hamilton@cbc.ca
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