New Tappan Zee Bridge

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New Tappan Zee Bridge
File:New NY Bridge.png
Concept art showcasing the new Tappan Zee Bridge with dynamic lighting
Coordinates Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
Crosses Hudson River
Locale Connecting South Nyack (Rockland County) and Tarrytown (Westchester County)
Characteristics
Design dual-span cable-stayed twin bridge, Lead Designer HDR, Inc.
History
Construction begin 2013
Construction cost $3.9 billion (2013 project budget) [1]
Opened Late 2016 (westbound span)
Late 2017 (eastbound span)
April 2018 (project completion)[1]
Statistics
Daily traffic 138,000+ (2011 est)

The new Tappan Zee Bridge is a new bridge being built in order to replace the current Governor Malcolm Wilson Tappan Zee Bridge over New York's Hudson River. Construction began in 2013, with opening targeted for 2018.

Background

The original Tappan Zee Bridge is a cantilever bridge built during 1952–1955. The bridge is 3 miles (4.8 km) long and spans the Hudson at its second-widest point. The Tappan Zee river crossing was named by 17th century Dutch settlers. The "Tappan" are believed to be a Native American tribe formerly living in the area; zee is the Dutch word for "sea".[2] The Tappan Zee Bridge, along with the smaller Bear Mountain Bridge, are the only crossings of the Tappan Zee, a 33-mile (53 km) stretch of river that passes through New York City's populous northern suburbs.

The original Tappan Zee Bridge, built in a period of material shortages during the Korean War

The deteriorating current structure bears an average of 138,000 vehicles per day, substantially more traffic than its designed capacity. During its first decade, the bridge carried fewer than 40,000 vehicles per day. Part of the justification for replacing the bridge stems from its construction immediately following the Korean War on a low budget of only $81 million. Unlike other major bridges in metropolitan New York, the Tappan Zee Bridge was designed to last only 50 years.[3] The new bridge is intended to last at least 100 years.[4]

The collapse of Minnesota's I-35W Mississippi River bridge in 2007 raised worries about the Tappan Zee Bridge's structural integrity.[5] These concerns, together with traffic overcapacity and increased maintenance costs, escalated the serious discussions already ongoing about replacing the Tappan Zee with a tunnel or a new bridge.[6][7] Six options were identified and submitted for project study and environmental review.[8]

Replacement bridge

The Federal Highway Administration issued a report in October 2011 designating the Tappan Zee's replacement to be a dual-span twin bridge. The new bridge is now under construction a few yards to the north of the existing bridge, and will connect to the existing highway approaches of the New York State Thruway (I-87/I-287) on both river banks.[9] Construction began as scheduled during 2013, with completion targeted for 2017.[10] Project costs are estimated at $5 to $6 billion. Bridge tolls could more than double (to $12-$15 for automobiles, eastbound only), rising to those of New York City's Hudson River crossings.[4]

As proposed,[9] the new Tappan Zee Bridge will include

  • Four vehicle lanes on each span, eight lanes total.
  • A shared-use bicycle and pedestrian path.

Like its predecessor, the new Tappan Zee Bridge will be administered by the New York State Thruway Authority. The authority is project co-sponsor, along with the state Department of Transportation.

The New York Metropolitan Transportation Council added the Tappan Zee Bridge to its list of projects eligible for federal funds in August 2012.[11]

The United States Department of Transportation approved the plan on September 25, 2012. The approval process took fewer than 10 months as opposed to the traditional multi-year process as a result of being placed on a "fast track" for approval by the Obama Administration.[12]

On December 17, 2012, New York state officials dropped their proposal for a 45 percent increase on the state Thruway toll for trucks, while advancing a $3.14 billion project to replace the bridge.[13]

As of the end of 2013, General Electric [14] had completed four seasons of dredging to remove contaminants from the river bottom. Approximately 70 percent of the sediments targeted for dredging have been removed (more than 1.9 million cubic yards of sediment).

The project timeline indicates demolition of the old bridge will begin in February 2017.[15]

Public transportation

West of Tappan Zee, the 680,000 residents of Rockland and Orange counties currently have very limited mass transit to New York City via the Port Jervis Line and Pascack Valley Line commuter rail services. The bridge plan includes as an objective merely, "Providing a crossing that does not preclude future trans-Hudson transit services."[9]

A proposed bus rapid transit system using the new bridge was shelved as too expensive. The existing New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority Metro-North Hudson commuter rail line Tarrytown station is located about 2,000 feet (610 m) from the new bridge's eastern landing. In 2011, the state estimated that a bus connector to the station would add about $151 million, or about 3 percent to projected costs of the new bridge.[16]

Responding to widespread concerns about the lack of new public transit service, bridge planners agreed only to a "dedicated express bus lane" in each direction for use during rush hour.[17]

Construction

The new Tappan Zee Bridge is being built by Tappan Zee Constructors, a design-build LLC composed of Fluor Corporation, American Bridge Company, Granite Construction Northeast and Traylor Bros. The Left Coast Lifter will be used to install groups of pre-assembled girders one full span at a time.[18] When completed in 2018, the new Tappan Zee Bridge will be the widest bridge on the planet and one of the longest cable-stayed spans in the nation.[19]

See also

References

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  11. Plotch, Philip Mark. Politics Across the Hudson: The Tappan Zee Megaproject. Rutgers University Press, New Jersey (2015). p. 165-168
  12. [1] Bloomberg Businessweek, September 25, 2012
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External links