New York City Department of Transportation finished demolishing the concrete deck on the Guider Avenue / East 8th Street Bridge, exposing the steel superstructure.
According to a DOT project alert, the superstructure will be dismantled and removed throughout May. Once gone, the concrete piers will finally be taken away.
The work demands a temporary realignment of travel lanes on both sides of the Belt Parkway.
The city expects the project to be completed by May 2011.
The construction at the Guider Avenue / East 8th Street overpass appears to be moving along swiftly. This photo, taken today, shows that half the roadway has been removed. Dismantling it may prove faster than rebuilding it, though.
Let’s just hope they get the rat problem under control.
(Photos courtesy of Arthur Borko.)
Courtesy of DOT
A message from your friendly DOT community Liaison to all Canarsie-area commuters. Yes, this is part of the Seven Bridges Project:
Beginning the week of April 19, 2010 the New York City Department of Transportation, Division of Bridges will begin major work on The Belt Parkway Bridge over Rockaway Parkway. This work includes installation of a water main, abutment and center pier work. During this work there will be one lane open on Rockaway Parkway under the Belt Parkway in both the northbound and southbound direction. The expected duration of this work is approximately three years. Vehicular and pedestrian and bicycle access to Canarsie Pier will be maintained at all times. During construction, traffic on the Belt Parkway will NOT be detoured onto local streets.
Questions regarding this project may be addressed to:
Enver Velovic, Community Liaison
(347) 702-6437 x 114 or SevenBeltBridgesOutreach@gmail.com
On Monday we gave you the schedules for lane closures along three local sections of the Belt Parkway undergoing construction. At the time, pothole repairs were just announced and it was suggested that closures related to the Seven Bridges Project would be suspended. That information was incorrect and we have updated the original post to reflect that.
In sum, ALL THREE PROJECTS ARE BEING DONE SIMULTANEOUSLY, AND ALL CLOSURES ARE IN EFFECT!
Just to make things clearer and gathered in one place, here again are the schedules for the lane closures. Safe driving!
UPDATE #2: (3/10/10 2:31 p.m.) We just got word from the Community Outreach Liason for the Seven Bridges Project that our assumption was incorrect: ALL THREE PROJECTS ARE RUNNING SIMULTANEOUSLY. That means THERE ARE THREE SECTIONS OF THE BELT PARKWAY EXPERIENCING LANE CLOSURES. The schedule for lane closures on all three projects are posted below.
UPDATE: (3/8/10 1:00 p.m.) Due to emergency pothole repairs between Pennsylvania Avenue and the Mill Basin Bridge, work on the Seven Bridges Project has been suspended. In addition to the two projects, emergency pothole repairs are being done between Pennsylvania Avenue and the Mill Basin Bridge, spurring additional lane closures. We are in the process of confirming which lane closures are currently in effect, but to the best of our knowledge b Beginning tonight a third set of lane closures (also below) are being put in place. , while the Seven Bridges lane closures are temporarily terminated. The pothole repairs are expected to continue until March 22.
Original post
More precise lane closure information was released last week regarding the East 8th Street/Guider Avenue Bridge reconstruction. Previously, we heard somewhat conflicting reports of when and how lanes would be closed, but the following information comes from the Department of Transportation (via Community Board 15). These closures, of course, are occurring simultaneously to closures related to the Seven Bridges Project. I’ve included the schedule for those closures as well, so that you can find the information all in one place.
Courtesy of jrcompton.com
Well, it appears the Belt Parkway overpass at Nostrand Avenue (and Shore Parkway) is once again a safe place to film a John Woo flick.
In response to yesterday’s post, “NYC DOT Murders Babies,” a crew has been dispatched to cut holes in the wire mesh and free the trapped, starving pigeons.
Sheepshead Bites makes a motion to rename this DOT team the Rainbow Division. Anyone second this motion?
Baby pigeons, anyway.
A group of city animal advocates is criticizing the Department of Transportation for carelessly snaring birds in a Sheepshead Bay construction site, preventing them from foraging for food or roosting with their mates.
“No matter what you think of pigeons, trapping them inside to slowly starve to death is cruel,” said a Gerritsen Beach resident who tipped us off to the issue.
On Tuesday morning, Jennifer Dudley arrived at Nostrand Avenue and Shore Parkway from her Manhattan home to scope out the situation for New York City Pigeon Rescuce Central, an animal-rights organization she volunteers with. At least half a dozen birds were trapped behind wooden planks put in place by the DOT to prevent debris from falling from the Belt Parkway bridge’s decaying seams.
According to Dudley, the birds had been stuck there at least since Friday, when a distraught resident alerted the organization to the situation. The resident told her that baby birds could be heard squeaking, but that ceased over the weekend as they likely starved to death.
Since then, Dudley and five others took up the cause to get wire meshing around the planking cut open so the pigeons could go free. But they’ve been met with apathy.
Dudley spent several hours on her cell phone making calls to the ASPCA, the DEC, the New York Animal Care & Control, the NYPD, and the FDNY, but found little help. Of them, only the ASPCA has a history of helping pigeons, but they require photos and specific reports. Dudley had a difficult time snapping clear photos in the dark underpass of the Belt Parkway.
Pigeons caught behind meshing is a pretty common occurrence, Dudley said. But while many may think of pigeons as pests, their separation from their mates and eventual starvation is a cruel punishment.
“This kind of thing happens a lot and nobody notices,” she said. “It’s not like there’s a huge community of pigeon advocates that can rally together” to pressure those with the equipment and authority to save them.
As expected, the Guider Avenue/East 8th Street Bridge reconstruction began yesterday. The overpass has been closed, and we heard some reports during yesterday evening’s rush hour of total madness in the area. The Belt Parkway was standstill, and surrounding streets – including Neptune Avenue and Avenue Z – were packed with confused drivers trying to find alternate routes.
As a reminder, in order to access the Belt Parkway West from Coney Island Avenue and Guider Avenue, continue north on Coney Island Avenue until Avenue Z. Make a left onto Hubbard Street, where they’ve just installed a stop light to deal with the additional traffic. Then make a right onto the Shore Parkway service road.
If possible avoid the area entirely during rush hour in either direction. If people can suggest an alternate route to efficiently bypass the Belt Parkway between Ocean Parkway and Knapp Street, Sheepshead Bites’ readers will have a leg up on other commuters.
Related stories:
Video: Scavo Says “Beware” Belt Parkway Projects
East 8th St. Bridge Reconstruction Begins Next Week
15-Minute Closures to Haunt Belt Parkway
Residents, get ready for another Belt Parkway boondoggle!
During Manhattan Beach Community Group’s January 27 meeting, Community Board 15 Chairperson Theresa Scavo explained the three projects occurring simultaneously in our area. We’ve already written about these projects, and nothing has changed, but it’s worth watching the video to see Scavo’s frustration with the plans as well MBCG member’s shocked reactions. The projects (and links to our coverage) are:
The reconstruction of the East 8th Street Bridge (a.k.a. Guider Avenue Bridge) over the Belt Parkway will kick off “on or about February 17.” As we noted last week, the Belt Parkway will see closures, including periodic 15-minute open-close intervals, as the contractor sees fit. The document below, circulated by the DOT and sent to us by Community Board 15, says the new bridge will have a 75-year life and will be completed May 2011.
