Tappan Zee Constructors, LLC (TZC) is scheduled to resume girder assembly installation on the eastbound bridge next week. TZC will place four assemblies on two piers near the Rockland landing. The operation is unlike previous assembly efforts, utilizing both the I Lift NY super crane and floating barges to place the structural steel atop the bridge’s concrete piers.
The assemblies are large sections of structural steel, composed of 12-foot-tall girders. They also include infrastructure to carry communications, electrical power, water and compressed air to support bridge operations. Each section is arranged at the project’s Port of Coeymans facility in Albany County and barged directly to the project site for installation.
TZC will install 10 additional steel girder assemblies on the eastbound span in future operations, scheduled to begin later this year.
Stay Cable Installation
TZC continues to anchor and tension stay cables on the main span. In the coming weeks, TZC will complete stay cable installation on the westbound bridge, connecting more than 40 sections of structural steel to the 419-foot main span towers.
The stay cables are comprised of numerous metal strands, tightly packed in a protective sheath. After the initial installation process, TZC installs additional strands inside the sheath to provide further strength.
Winter Weather Preparation
TZC will limit marine operations tomorrow, Friday, March 10, due to forecasted snow, freezing temperatures and high winds. Work on the landings will continue. Select personnel will also remove snow at all project locations. TZC will continue to monitor conditions and respond to any weather-related issues.
TZC’s inclement weather preparation protocols include inspecting and adjusting all mooring lines, inspecting crane barges and securing all equipment, having tug boats on the water to provide rapid response, moving the large majority of cranes to shallow water moorings and taking all smaller crew boats out of the water. Additionally, TZC uses video and GPS to monitor the entire fleet of project vessels from its security operations center.
Marine operations will resume after a careful review of the project site, helping ensure the continued safety of the public and the project team.
Additional work includes:
- Main span steel installation
- Deck panel installation
- Support for river-based work from the Rockland trestle
- Survey inspections on the existing bridge
- Utility work and excavation at the Westchester landings
- New police facility preparation in Tarrytown
- Pier foundation work
- Maintenance dock construction
- Bridge utilities and lighting installation
- Noise barrier construction
Boater Safety
Marine units are continuing patrols to monitor the construction zone and encourage all boaters to obey the established U.S. Coast Guard safety protocols.
Periodic closures of the main navigation channel and adjacent span areas will occur due to on-going construction. Boaters are strongly encouraged to avoid the project site during these closures.
The closures are anticipated through the end of this year as project crews install new sections of structural steel and road deck panels between the towers of the new crossing. Cranes, barges and other construction equipment will occupy parts of the channel during this time.
During the closures, boaters are strongly encouraged to avoid the project site. Times and dates of the closures will appear in the U.S. Coast Guard’s weekly Notice to Mariners; on the New NY Bridge (NNYB) project’s Twitter feed (@NewNYBridge); and broadcast on Marine Radio Channel 22A.
Times and dates of the channel closures are subject to change.
TZC will be monitoring the main channel during closure hours and can be contacted via Marine Radio Channel 16 for assistance. Both TZC security personnel off-site and marine units will advise incoming boaters of the closures and direct them appropriately. TZC is also in on-going communication with the commercial shipping industry about the channel closures.
Boaters are strongly urged to use the center 600 feet of the main channel (when available) to navigate in a north-south direction with no wake at a maximum speed of five knots.
TZC has installed Private Aids to Navigation to supplement the existing channel delineation. Buoys are positioned both north and south of the bridge and consist of two green buoys to mark the west edge of the channel and two red buoys to mark the east edge. Two red navigation lights are on the north side of the new bridge to mark the limits of the shipping channel.
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. The U.S. Coast Guard also has established a safety zone encompassing all navigable waters within a 200-yard radius of the largest machine on the project, the I Lift NY super crane, legally registered with the U.S. Coast Guard as the Left Coast Lifter.
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. The Eastern RNA will be extremely active and vessels transitioning to and from the eastern shoreline at Tarrytown should approach and depart to the north. The Western RNA will be impassable at times and mariners should stay clear of the area.
Mariners also should be aware that TZC will continue work in the vicinity of the side channels under the existing bridge. Mariners are advised to stay clear of all overhead work and maintain a safe distance of 1,000 feet from all construction equipment and support vessels. In addition, all bridge piers and abutments are protected by a 25-yard security zone.
The 600-foot navigation channel under the main span of the existing bridge remains lit per U.S. Coast Guard permit requirements, as are all moorings, barges and other equipment. All mariners should consult the latest USCG Local Notice to Mariners before transiting this area.
More New NY Bridge boater safety information, including the U.S. Coast Guard Notice to Mariners and construction site map can be found at NewNYBridge.com/Boater. The page includes an interactive GPS map showing vessel locations on the Hudson River, detailing which vessels are stopped and which are in motion to a new location, for recreational and commercial boaters to get current information on the very active construction zone. The vessel tracking map is for informational purposes and not intended for navigation.
The New York State Thruway Authority provides this information as a public service. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk. Nothing in these guidelines shall supersede the actual construction conditions, and regulations set forth by the U.S. Coast Guard.
