Three years into the largest active bridge construction project in the country, the New York State Thruway Authority has released a two-minute video chronicling progress on the New NY Bridge, a 3.1-mi.-long twin-span, cable-stayed replacement for the 60-year-old Tappan Zee Bridge across the Hudson River.
Scheduled to open in 2018, the new bridge features more than 100,000 tons of domestically produced steel, which will support the road deck and infrastructure for bridge operations. Each steel girder assembly is a structure in its own right, measuring hundreds of feet in length and weighing as much as 1,100 tons. High Steel Structures, Inc., and Hirschfeld Industries (both AISC/NSBA members and AISC certified fabricators) are furnishing the approach span steel, while Canam-Bridges (also an AISC/NSBA member and AISC certified fabricator) is fabricating the main span steel. If laid end to end, the new bridge’s girders would stretch for over 30 miles. Almost the entire steel framework for the bridge should be completed by October.
The time-lapse video debuted last week as part of Governor’s Day at the Great New York State Fair in Syracuse. You can also get a closer look at the bridge’s daily progress via the project’s webcams and photo gallery and even join in celebrating the bridge as part of national SteelDay! On the evening of September 29, the day before SteelDay, AISC and NSBA are hosting a special event near the bridge site featuring a panel discussion with the project’s team members. Registration is available here.