Bridge projects to detour traffic through 2022

Myers Road will bear the brunt of the detours caused by current and upcoming Lansing bridge-replacement projects.

For about three weeks in late November and early December, both Route 34B and Ludlowville Road will be closed to traffic as contractors begin the demolition of the Route 34B bridge (scheduled for Nov. 20) and complete the replacement of the Ludlowville Road bridge (planned for Dec. 8).

Myers Road is then expected to be the detour for local north-south traffic until the new Route 34B bridge is completed in the summer of 2022. Large trucks will be required to continue to detour via Route 90 and Route 34.

A town plan that widened Myers Road from the park to the schools, increased police patrols and erected radar signs to create awareness of speed was carried out in
anticipation of the two-year detour.

Meantime, the county is working with Ludlowville residents to plan traffic-calming devices for the hamlet once the Ludlowville Road bridge is completed and that road is reopened, according to Jeff Smith, director of the Tompkins County Highway Department.

Smith said that Tompkins County and the state Department of Transportation (DOT) have worked closely to minimize disruption.

“Two separate projects from two agencies and with two sources of money are only overlapping a few weeks,” he said. “We did everything in our power to push [the Ludlowville Road bridge] project ahead.”

Smith also noted the contribution of the Ithaca Tompkins County Transportation Council in developing a five-year working plan for local transportation infrastructure.

The Ludlowville Road bridge project is being overseen by the county. Silverline Construction is the contractor. The entire bridge is being replaced, including the footers, abutments, the span itself, the water line that ran under the bridge and a hydrant. The new bridge will be four feet wider than the old one.

The project budget is $1,761,350, Smith said. Eighty percent of that comes from the federal government, 15% from New York state and 5% from Tompkins County. That local share of the cost is being reduced by $90,000 as a result of increased state support, Smith said.

The Route 34B bridge project is a state-level project. Bidding for the new project opens Sept. 10, and the contract will be awarded in mid-to-late October. More details about its design and construction schedule will be available afterward, according to Curtis Jetter, state DOT Region 3 public information officer.

The 92-year-old bridge has been slated for replacement since its 2015 closure when inspectors identified faults with the steel under the bridge deck. Temporary repairs were made while the DOT began planning the bridge’s complete replacement for 2019. Funding delays pushed construction back to the currently scheduled start in late November of this year.

The new bridge will cost about $14.8 million, will have wider lanes and shoulders and will use angled steel girders, rather than arches, for support. It is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2022, according to the DOT’s website.

In Brief:

September Is National Preparedness Month

The Core Advisory Group of Tompkins County reminds you that “Emergencies don’t wait. Make your plan today.” Pledge to prepare for emergencies at home by three simple steps: build a kit, make a plan and stay informed.

For more information or assistance with emergency preparedness, contact Jeff Boles at 607-272-2433 and jeff@fliconline.org.

The Core Advisory Group of Tompkins County advocates for the inclusion of people with disabilities in all emergency preparedness activities and welcomes any interested people from the Tompkins County Community. For more information, contact Jan Lynch at 607-2722433 and jan@fliconline.org.

For more information about National Emergency Preparedness Month, you can go to ready.gov or tompkinscountyny.gov/tompkinsready.