"It's so nice and smooth."
That's how one man described the new State Route 520 bridge, which opened to foot traffic over the weekend.
You may have heard that some people were stuck on the bridge, in a foot traffic jam, waiting an hour for a shuttle to scuttle them home. But most seemed OK with the situation. They bought food from food trucks and marveled that the bike lane will extend from the Arboretum to the Eastside.
The 520 bridge was a $1.3 billion project built in several parts, said Steve Peer, media manager for the 520 bridge. The pontoons were built in Aberdeen; the bridge deck in Kenmore.
[asset-images[{"caption": "Tens of thousands of people walked across the new State Route 520. The bridge — touted as the longest floating bridge in the world — opens to traffic in several weeks.", "fid": "125346", "style": "placed_wide", "uri": "public://201604/520_crowds.jpg", "attribution": "Credit Courtesy of Chris Moore"}]][asset-images[{"caption": "Food trucks lined the new, not-yet-opened 520 bridge during the grand opening Go Long event. ", "fid": "125347", "style": "placed_wide", "uri": "public://201604/520_food_trucks.jpg", "attribution": "Credit Courtesy of Chris Moore"}]][asset-images[{"caption": "A Broom Hilda on 520 during the opening ceremony of the bridge.", "fid": "125348", "style": "placed_wide", "uri": "public://201604/broom_hilda_on_520.jpg", "attribution": "Credit Courtesy of Chris Moore"}]][asset-images[{"caption": "View point on a cloudy morning at the opening of the SR 520 bridge on Saturday. The bridge doesn't open to traffic for another few weeks.", "fid": "125349", "style": "placed_wide", "uri": "public://201604/520_view_points.jpg", "attribution": "Credit Courtesy of Chris Moore"}]]