SAN FRANCISCO – Although they were trying to assure the public that the cracked steel beam discovered on Tuesday in Transbay's new transit center was an isolated incident, officials in San Francisco admitted to having discovered a second, compromised beam near the first.

The revelation added to the city's embarrassment and growing concern over the security of a $ 2.2 billion transit platform that was to be closed just 45 days after it was unveiled.

About 170,000 visitors are in town for the annual mega-convention hosted by salesforce cloud computing giant, whose name is attached to the transit center and the newly opened 1,070-foot building next door.

"The moment could not be worse," said Josh Brown, who lives in the city and attends the convention. "If you visit the site and like it, go see the new Transbay terminal, the Salesforce area," Oh, sorry, you can not. He will collapse. & # 39; & # 39; "

Beyond the poorly timed civic black eye, the most serious issue is the detection of faulty beams on the third floor of a structure built over three blocks on seismic ground.

Mark Zabaneh, executive director of Transbay's Joint Powers Authority, has repeatedly assured at a press conference on Wednesday that the beam problem is limited to the eastern part of the three-section facility, the side of Fremont Street. Nevertheless, the platform will be closed at least until the end of next week, while engineers will develop a repair plan.

"We will expand our investigation to make sure the transit center is safe and secure," Zabaneh said. "We have no reason to believe at this point that this situation exists elsewhere than on Fremont Street."

The causes of the faulty bundles – one with a crack all the way across 2½ feet, the other with lesser damage – have not yet been determined, Zabaneh said. He mentioned the problems of fabrication, welding, installation and design as possible culprits.

The engineers plan to review the design of the terminal and determine if these beams can support the roof and the public park above. In the meantime, they will strengthen the area of ​​concern to relieve the burden while seeking a permanent solution.

"At this point, we do not know what is the cause of the crack; we know that the building is safe, "said Zabaneh.

The transit center, conceived as a "major west central station", has had complications, including a cost overrun of $ 800 million and significant delays in construction. A month after it opened on August 12, the half-mile walk around the rooftop park began to collapse.

In addition, the nearby Millennium Tower has sunk 18 inches and has shifted northwest since its inception in 2009, attributed to its proponents on groundwater pumping at the construction site of the Transbay Terminal.

The riders are now headed to the old Transbay temporary terminal, a few blocks away.

While waiting for a bus to Oakland after his shift at BlackRock, Joseph Cobbina said he was "shocked" and "saddened" to hear the new center stop for a while.

Sarah Larone, an auditor working in Oakland, said the problems at the transit center did not reflect her hometown of San Francisco.

"It's a shame it's new and it's already falling apart," Larone said. "I guess it happens, problems with buildings and windows and everything else. At least the buses still work. It would be overwhelming if they did not do it. "

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