I-495 Bridge in Wilmington Was Closed Earlier This Month
After Shifts in Some Foundation Piles
Tappan Zee Constructors, LLC (TZC), the New York State Thruway Authority’s design-build contractor for the New NY Bridge project, will send some construction materials for the New NY Bridge to the state of Delaware to assist with emergency highway bridge repairs, Thruway Authority Chairman Howard P. Milstein announced today.
The materials had been stockpiled for future use on the new bridge, and diverting these materials to Delaware will have no monetary impact and cause no delays in the construction schedule of the New NY Bridge project.
The materials include steel rebar and rebar cages (see photo below) that will used in new piles to be installed to reinforce and replace failed foundation piles for the busy I-495 bridge over the Christina River in Wilmington, Delaware’s largest city. The bridge was closed to all traffic after sections of existing piles failed earlier this month, causing the roadway to shift.
“New York shares a responsibility with all other states to maintain the safety of our infrastructure and protect the people who rely on it – and today we are coming together to meet that responsibility for the many commuters who utilize I-495 in Delaware,” Chairman Milstein said. “Diverting extra materials from the New NY Bridge project will have no impact on our project schedule here on the Hudson, but it will go a long way to ensuring a safe resolution to a critical infrastructure emergency. This is an extraordinary example of government at the state and federal levels working side-by-side with the private sector in a time of need, and I am proud that New York is stepping up to lend a hand.”
With the help of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA), the Delaware Department of Transportation (DelDOT) reached out to the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT) earlier this week to ask for emergency assistance on the project. TZC had the requested materials on hand for use later this summer on the New NY Bridge project.
TZC will immediately provide on-hand steel rebar and rebar cages to DelDOT, and will fabricate additional rebar cages for DelDOT in the coming weeks. TZC will provide DelDOT with a total of approximately 4,800 linear feet of rebar cages at an estimated cost of $4-5 million. The materials being diverted from the New NY Bridge project will be replaced in July, in time for when they are needed for the new bridge.
“The New NY Bridge and the I-495 Bridge in Wilmington are both critical highway transportation infrastructure components that play a vital role in local and regional economies,” said Thruway Authority Executive Director Tom Madison. “The state and federal agencies involved in this effort all share the same goal – to maintain safe and reliable roadways for all travelers.”
“New York State DOT, Thruway and FHWA have worked in close partnership throughout the New NY Bridge project, and our partnership has facilitated a rapid response to Delaware’s request for essential construction materials to restore a critically important transportation link,” said State DOT Commissioner Joan McDonald. “We are all pleased to be able to provide this much-needed assistance.”
“Tappan Zee Constructors, LLC, is working together with The New York Thruway Authority to provide steel rebar and rebar cages to the Delaware Department of Transportation to assist them in their deadline-driven repairs of the I-495 bridge in Wilmington,” said TZC President Darrell Waters. “Tappan Zee Constructors knows firsthand the importance of strengthening our nation’s infrastructure with our Tappan Zee bridge project in New York, and we are expediting delivery of the steel reinforcement materials to enable timely repair of the bridge in Delaware.”
U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx visited the Delaware site last Friday, where he stressed the need to get the I-495 bridge reopened as quickly as possible and noted that maintaining the reliability of highway infrastructure across the country is a “national issue.”
