A New Winter’s Coat (of Paint) for Port of L.A.’s Vincent Thomas Bridge

It rises 35 stories above the nation’s busiest port, a sea-green landmark for ships arriving in Los Angeles from around the world.

By day, an average of 48,000 cars and trucks travel its four lanes; by night, its shimmering royal blue lights form a gateway to the maritime communities of San Pedro and Wilmington.

The Vincent Thomas Bridge -- named for the state assemblyman who championed construction of the span, which opened in 1963 -- is, at 6,060 feet, the fourth-longest suspension bridge in California.

Traffic was backed up last week by maintenance crews as part of a year-round effort to keep the bridge freshly painted. Nine Caltrans workers labor to cover all 1.6 million square feet of steel siding and cables with three to four coats of oil-based paint, totaling 54,800 gallons.

They start with a terra cotta-colored primer, followed by two to three finish coats in the bridge’s distinctive green. The final coat used on visible surfaces is flecked with silver, lending the structure its iridescent glow.

Much of the paint is sprayed on, and crews must drape sheets of vinyl below them to catch any paint that might fall into and pollute the water. The bridge’s heavy cables require particular care: Workers don large mitts that they douse in paint and then clasp the cables to coat them.

A separate crew is responsible for checking and replacing the bridge’s 278 light bulbs, from the tower-top beacons to navigation lights below the roadbed. Other crews inspect the bridge to assure that its cables and welds have not been weakened by weather or age.

In all, the California Department of Transportation spends an estimated $1 million annually to maintain the bridge.

“It’s a vital link for goods moving in and out of the harbor,” said Caltrans spokesman Dave White, who knows the bridge well -- he spent 12 years as a painter on it.