WSDOT reopened State Route 520 floating bridge early Monday morning after repairs were made to the damaged mechanical system.
After strong winds forced the closure of the floating bridge on Sunday, the bridge crew discovered damage to a mechanical system on the aging span.
On Sunday night, crews worked to repair the bridge and re-open it in time for the Monday morning commute.
Travis Phelps of the Washington State Department of Transportation said his agency worked with state troopers to close the bridge around 2:30 p.m. as waves crashed onto the roadway.
At that point, crews found damage to a set of rollers used to open the span for marine traffic or to relieve pressure on the aging structure in windstorms.
Phelps said Sunday's wind was not severe enough to require that kind of opening, but the repair must be done in case the bridge needs to open for another storm.
"It's an aging structure but the good news is we know the structure very, very well," Phelps said. "This is not a minor repair but it is a repair that we're confident we can make overnight."
For the bridge span to open, it must first move vertically and then horizontally on a set of rollers.
Phelps said the damage was to the vertical section of rollers, and the repair required jacking the roadway up a few inches to replace a damaged piece, which is why traffic could not use the structure during repairs.
Phelps said the combination of the weather and the age of the structure likely led to the damage.
In part because of its vulnerability to windstorms and earthquakes, the 520 bridge is about to be replaced with a new bridge due to open in April.