A $21.1 million, two-year project to replace the two I-87 Adirondack Northway bridges between Lake George and Warrensburg in Warren County with one single span is now underway.
According to an announcement from New York State Governor Kathy Hochul, the new bridge will be a 323-foot-long, two-span, steel multi-girder bridge with a concrete deck. It will have a vertical clearance of a minimum of 49-feet-6 inches above U.S. Route 9.
The new bridge will be constructed between the two existing fifty-year old structures and are expected to have a lifespan of 75 years, a press release stated.
Travel lanes will be maintained in both directions during the project.
In spring 2023, northbound traffic will be shifted onto the new structure. The existing northbound bridge will be demolished so that the remainder of the new bridge can be constructed in its footprint.
Southbound Northway traffic will then be shifted to the new bridge once the project is completed in the summer of 2024.
The new bridge “will enhance safety and improve travel and resiliency along a vital artery for the flow of people and commerce in the North Country and Adirondacks, helping to ensure that this essential north-south route remains open and accessible for decades to come,” the press release stated.
“This project will improve travel on a critically important thoroughfare in the North Country and help keep New Yorkers, visitors and commerce on the move for decades to come,” Governor Hochul stated.
The section of the Northway between Lake George and Warrensburg is an important corridor for travel to and within the North Country and the Adirondacks, the press release stated.
“This new bridge will help facilitate travel for local residents, visitors and businesses between Warren County and neighboring communities. Farther afield, the Northway is a vital international connection with Canada, and serves interstate and inter-regional traffic as well,” said New York State Department of Transportation Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez.
“The Northway is an economic engine that helps drive commerce for the North Country, Capital Region and beyond, so it is imperative that we do all we can to make sure this vital roadway is ready to meet the challenges of the 21st century, allowing people and goods to get where they need to go safely and efficiently,“ Dominguez stated.
While work is underway on the Northway, the speed limit on the Interstate has been reduced to 55 mph approaching and within the work zone, and motorists are urged to move over, merge early, slow down and drive responsibly. Fines are doubled for speeding in a work zone. Convictions of two or more speeding violations in a work zone could result in the suspension of an individual’s driver license.
Traffic on U.S. Route 9 underneath the bridges has also been reduced to a single alternating lane controlled by traffic signals.
Motorists are reminded to move over a lane, if safely possible, or slow down significantly whenever encountering roadside vehicles displaying red, white, blue, amber or green lights, including maintenance and construction vehicles in work zones.
Photos of project to remove the twin spans between Exits 22 and 23 of the Adirondack Northway courtesy New York State Department of Transportation.
A version of this article first appeared on the Lake George Mirror, America’s oldest resort paper, covering Lake George and its surrounding environs. You can subscribe to the Mirror HERE.
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