Work will begin soon on $19 million in repairs to I-81 in Salina, Cicero and Hastings, the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) announced Tuesday.
The work includes a $10.8 million project to restore the bridges that carry I-81 over Rte. 11 in the town of Salina. Workers will replace bridge joints, paint, repair concrete and steel, and install thin bridge deck overlays.
Traffic will be reduced to two lanes in each direction during the work. All of the southbound highway work will be completed by the beginning of the Great New York State Fair in late August. Work will be completed on the northbound side after the fair.
The $8.2 million bridge rehabilitation project over the New York Barge Canal in Cicero and Hastings is reducing the thickness of the concrete driving surface on two bridges and replaces steel railing assemblies with concrete barriers on the I-81 bridge.
The bridge beams are being further linked together and repaired as needed. Joints and navigation lights are being replaced. In addition, an acoustic bridge monitoring system has been installed to more closely monitor bridge conditions. This year's work will focus on the southbound bridge. Improvements were made to the northbound bridge last year.
Most of the time two lanes of traffic in each direction will be maintained, including peak hours, with one southbound lane being carried on the northbound structure. The work-zone speed limit will be reduced to 55 miles per hour.
