Second span of NYC’s Kosciuszko Bridge to open ahead of schedule | Dump Truck Company
Aerial view of construction on the new Kosciuszko Bridge as seen on Monday May 6, 2019. Photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Office of Governor.
The second span of the Kosciuszko Bridge that carries traffic over Newtown Creek will open ahead of schedule in September, the New York Daily News reports. When construction on the bridge began in 2014, engineers estimated it wouldn’t be completed until 2023, but later moved the date to 2020.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo credited the “design-build” approach with the earlier opening saying, “Through the normal procurement, it would have been done 2023. The design-build methodology moved it up to the end of this year, and now we’re moving it up to September.”
The new, completed bridge will consist of two spans with five lanes for Queens-bound traffic, four lanes for Brooklyn-bound, and a 20-foot-wide bike and pedestrian path, which the old bridge did not have.
“It’s a missing link between Brooklyn and Queens, and it’s a good sign that the new bridge is going to accommodate more than just drivers,” said Transportation Alternatives spokesman Joe Cutrufo, according to the news agency. “It’s kind of crazy that in 2019 it’s news that there is going to be a right of way for cyclists and pedestrians — that should be the norm.”
Construction, most of which will be cosmetic, will continue after the new span opens.