Ta-da! The behind schedule/ahead of schedule new Eastern span of the Bay Bridge gets its last piece of roadway installed today, marking a major milestone for the fancy new Chinese-built connection between Oakland and Yerba Buena Island. Controversial Bay Area mayors Ed Lee and Jean Quan will be in attendance to celebrate the final piece of the roadway puzzle at 10 a.m. this morning. Bridge commuters, don't expect to be changing your traffic patterns just yet — the bridge doesn't open to traffic until the fall of 2013.

In the meantime, Caltrans crews still need to install the self-anchored suspension cable which, unlike the Golden Gate Bridge's anchored cable, supports the roadway using it's own tension. Kind of like an arm sling.

Here's what the bridge itself had to say about it:

Previously: New Bay Bridge Eastern Span Lights Up Tonight
[Chron]
[SFEx]