Post by Logan on Jan 19, 2016 0:30:18 GMT -6
Bay Bridge reopens after protesters chain themselves, shut down span
California Highway Patrol officers arrested 25 demonstrators after the group used the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday Monday to chain themselves and their vehicles across all five westbound lanes of the Bay Bridge, bringing traffic to a standstill as they demanded racial equity.
The activists froze traffic for about 30 minutes before they were arrested on suspicion of public nuisance, unlawful assembly and obstructing free passage, CHP Officer Vu Williams said.
The protesters apparently drove onto the bridge in five cars shortly before 4 p.m., stopping near the new eastern span tower — one in each of the five lanes. They stepped out on Interstate 80, just east of Yerba Buena Island, and strung chain through each of the cars and across the lanes, forcing traffic to back up well into the MacArthur Maze in the East Bay.
CHP officers used bolt cutters to cut the chains, Williams said.
Police began arresting the protesters, who were placed in zip-tie handcuffs and moved to the shoulder of the highway so that lanes could be reopened.
Continued at www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Bay-Bridge-reopening-after-protesters-chain-6767354.php .
California Highway Patrol officers arrested 25 demonstrators after the group used the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday Monday to chain themselves and their vehicles across all five westbound lanes of the Bay Bridge, bringing traffic to a standstill as they demanded racial equity.
The activists froze traffic for about 30 minutes before they were arrested on suspicion of public nuisance, unlawful assembly and obstructing free passage, CHP Officer Vu Williams said.
The protesters apparently drove onto the bridge in five cars shortly before 4 p.m., stopping near the new eastern span tower — one in each of the five lanes. They stepped out on Interstate 80, just east of Yerba Buena Island, and strung chain through each of the cars and across the lanes, forcing traffic to back up well into the MacArthur Maze in the East Bay.
CHP officers used bolt cutters to cut the chains, Williams said.
Police began arresting the protesters, who were placed in zip-tie handcuffs and moved to the shoulder of the highway so that lanes could be reopened.
Continued at www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Bay-Bridge-reopening-after-protesters-chain-6767354.php .