Work begins on $22.6M in Long Island road projects, state says
Work has begun to repair the Route 110 bridge over Route 109 in Farmingdale, one of several Nassau and Suffolk projects started with $22.6 million in NY transportation funds, state officials said. Credit: Barry Sloan
Work is underway on three Long Island transportation projects totaling $22.6 million in repairs and technology improvements, the state Department of Transportation announced Monday.
The three projects include $9.5 million in repairs to three bridges in Nassau and Suffolk, $7.4 million to replace the bridge deck on North Ocean Avenue in Suffolk County Route 83 over the Long Island Expressway in Brookhaven and $5.7 million to install 50 new traffic cameras on state highways in both counties.
The aim is to enhance road safety, help traffic flow more efficiently and relay information to drivers, officials said.
The projects are part of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s “Drivers First” initiative, which has been designed to minimize motorist inconvenience.
Some of the work, such as the bridge repairs, involve routine maintenance and is being done throughout the state, Department of Transportation spokesman Stephen Canzoneri said.
Updates to the bridges — on State Route 107 over Sea Cliff Avenue in Glen Cove, State Route 110 over State Route 109 in Babylon and Northern State Parkway over Round Swamp Road in Huntington — will include concrete and steel repairs, joint removal or replacement and new pavement. Work that will most affect travel lanes will be scheduled during off-peak day and night hours. These updates are expected to be completed in summer 2019.
The heavily trafficked North Ocean Avenue bridge has been expanded twice in the last 20 years to accommodate the more than 43,000 vehicles that use it each day, Canzoneri said.
“We’ve planned the construction at different stages to make sure that at least 5 of the 7 lanes will remain open at all times,” he said.
The new bridge deck will be in place by spring 2019.
The new cameras are part of an expansion of New York State’s free travel information service, 511NY, which provides real-time updates. It will allow for more information, including travel times and traffic alerts, to be relayed to commuters on variable message signs throughout the area and on 511NY.org.
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