The first half of the Tappan Zee Bridge replacement will open Aug. 25.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo confirmed the date during an infrastructure-focused presentation to the Association for a Better New York in Manhattan Thursday morning. The opening of the $3.9 billion bridge—now officially called the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge—marks the beginning of the end for the old, 62-year-old Tappan Zee Bridge.
On the evening of Friday, Aug. 25, running into the next morning, the Thruway Authority will move all Rockland-bound traffic onto the new 96-ft-wide span. Westchester-bound traffic will stay on the bridge for a few months and then will shift over too. Once that is done, all traffic will be carried over eight lanes, four in each direction. Traffic will be separated by a concrete Jersey barrier.
Crews will then be able to work on demolishing the old Tappan Zee Bridge while finishing off the second span. The state says the second span will be done sometime in 2018. Then, traffic will split, one span carrying eastbound traffic and the other westbound.
The original bridge, built in 1955, had deteriorated considerably and was garnering poor safety ratings from regulators. According to Cuomo's office, between 1999 and 2011 the state spent $88 million just talking about a replacement.
In 2011, the state tapped the Tappan Zee Constructors, a consortium of contractors, to design and build the new bridge. Construction began in October 2013.
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Source: The Journal News
