Annual Public Meetings to Be Held May 12 and 14 Periodic Closures of All Lanes Will Occur Tonight and Next Week; Triple-Lane Closures During Overnights Next Week

The New NY Bridge project’s 2015 Annual Public Meetings will be held Tuesday, May 12 in Westchester and Thursday, May 14 in Rockland. Hosted by Brian Conybeare, special advisor to the governor for the project, the meetings will allow the public to learn about construction progress to date and upcoming activities. Q&A sessions will be held following the briefings for attendees to have their questions and comments answered by project leaders from the New York State Thruway Authority and Tappan Zee Constructors, LLC (TZC). Specifics are as follows:

Temporary All-Electronic Toll Collection System Work
Several weeks of weekday overnight triple-lane closures of southbound New York State Thruway (I-87/ I-287) will continue during the week of May 11. The Monday-through-Friday closures will start at 8 p.m. with the closure of one lane near exit 11 (Nyack – South Nyack – US Route 9W) to the Tappan Zee Bridge, followed by a second lane closed at 9 p.m. and a third at 10:30 p.m. All lanes will reopen by 6 a.m., Tuesday through Friday and 8 a.m., Saturday. At least one lane will remain open at all times, except during the periodic traffic holds described below.

The lane closures are necessary to allow TZC to modify the highway for a temporary all-electronic toll collection system that will be employed until a permanent system is constructed in the location of the current toll plaza in Tarrytown.

In addition, periodic closures of all four lanes of the southbound Thruway in the vicinity of exit 11 (Nyack – South Nyack – US Route 9W) will occur tonight between 8 p.m., Friday, May 8 and 8 a.m., Saturday, May 9. Periodic closures also will occur between 8 p.m., Thursday, May 14 and 4:30 a.m., Friday, May 15 and between 8 p.m., Friday, May 15 to 8 a.m., Saturday, May 16. To ensure the public’s safety, the New York State Police will stop and hold all traffic approaching the area immediately before the closures go into effect. Motorists will be permitted to enter the Thruway from all ramps during the closures. The complete closures are necessary to move equipment from the right shoulder to the left shoulder.

Finally, the exit 10 (Nyack – South Nyack – US Route 9W) on-ramp to the southbound Thruway will be closed from 10 p.m., Monday, May 11 to 5 a.m., Tuesday, May 12. Drivers will be directed to use the on-ramp from Route 59 in Nyack, as shown on the following graphic. The closure will allow TZC to mobilize a crane that will place concrete slabs for the all-electronic toll collection system.

All planned work is subject to postponement due to weather conditions.

River Road in South Nyack
River Road utility work will continue the week of May 11. The work may require reducing River Road to one lane at times. TZC flag persons will direct traffic as needed and additional signage as well as other safety measures will be in place.

Foundation Work on the New Bridge
Marine crews will continue working on the foundations for the new bridge next week by placing reinforcing steel and concrete in the piles, main span pile caps and approach span pile caps. The high-strength concrete is made on site by the project’s two floating batch plants. Teams also will erect formwork for the cast-in-place pier columns, which eventually will support the new bridge’s road deck. With only a small percentage of piles left to install, pile driving operations will continue next week. Pile driving is restricted to 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Monday through Friday and noon to 7 p.m., Saturday.

Crews also will continue working on the bridge’s landings at the Rockland and Westchester shorelines. The abutments, comprised of steel and concrete, will serve as strong bases where the new crossing meets the landside roadway.

Construction of Pier 1 located near River Road in S. Nyack will continue with the installation of sheet piles. The sheet piles support the surrounding soil while the foundation for the new bridge pier is constructed. TZC is implementing additional noise reducing measures, including sound-absorptive temporary noise barriers to protect nearby residents. The Environmental compliance team will be on site to monitor the noise levels during this operation.

TZC will continue concrete placement for foundations near the South Nyack shoreline. The concrete for this work is being acquired from local concrete suppliers and is delivered by truck to the Rockland trestle located off the Thruway’s southbound access ramp. Trucks exit the trestle to the Thruway via the northbound access ramp. The access ramps are used only by construction vehicles, providing a safe route directly to the work site and reducing traffic impacts on local roads.

Additional work includes:

• Pile cap foundation construction
• Main span foundation construction
• Concrete placement for foundations
• Landing abutment concrete work
• River Road utility work
• Support for river-based work from the Rockland trestle
• Survey inspections on the existing bridge
• Westchester Landings utility work

Boater Safety
The U.S. Coast Guard has established a Safety Zone surrounding 16 construction barge mooring locations at the project site. No unauthorized vessels are allowed in the Safety Zone. In addition, marine law enforcement will be enforcing the rules of the expanded Regulated Navigation Areas (RNAs) east and west of the Safety Zone. The RNAs stretch 500 yards north and 500 yards south of the existing bridge. Boaters are urged to transit the main channel with no wake at a maximum speed of 5 knots and to use extreme caution on the river at all times.

More New NY Bridge boater safety information, including the U.S. Coast Guard Notice to Mariners and construction site maps, can be found here at NewNYBridge.com. An interactive map showing vessel locations on the Hudson River is also available at https://www.newnybridge.com/barge/index.html for recreational and commercial boaters to get updated information on the very active construction zone. The GPS tracking map is for informational purposes and not intended for navigation.

Mariners also should be aware that TZC will continue work in the vicinity of the side channels under the existing bridge. Additional temporary navigational lights have been installed to further define the 600-foot navigation channel under the main span. Permanent elements of the new bridge are lit per U.S. Coast Guard requirements, as are all moorings, barges and other equipment.

All lane closures are subject to change due to traffic, weather or emergency situations. Please visit https://www.thruway.ny.gov/travelers/map/ for real-time information regarding traffic conditions.