05/03/2007
New 92nd Street task force

In response to the upcoming Verrazano Bridge construction project, Congressman Vito Fossella announced the formation of a Task Force charged with developing short- and long-term solutions to traffic problems at the 92nd Street exit ramp off the Verrazano Bridge and in the immediate area.

Fossella said the Task Force members will include James Ferrara, general manager of the Verrazano Bridge; NYC Department of Transportation Deputy Brooklyn Borough Commissioner Dalila Hall, 68th Precinct Commanding Officer Eric Rodriguez, and Mary Nilsen, former president of the Dahlgren Place Block Association and a member of Community Board 10.

Community Board 10 and local elected officials have also been invited to participate.

Fossella said the task force will hold its first meeting in May to begin preliminary discussions on ways to improve traffic flow in the area during the construction project as well as after its completion in 2009.

“The 92nd Street exit has been a traffic hotspot for some time and will likely be exacerbated by the Verrazano Bridge construction project,” Fossella said. “I know many residents are concerned about the impact of the construction project in an area that already faces traffic congestion. We need to explore common sense improvements that can be made to the intersection of 92nd Street and Dahlgren Street as well as in the nearby area to reduce congestion and back-ups during the project and thereafter. This Task Force brings together transportation experts and local leaders with a single goal—improving traffic in our community.”

Fossella’s office met this week near the 92nd Street exit ramp with Ferrara and Hall to discuss traffic-reduction strategies for the area in advance of the first meeting of the Task Force.

The Verrazano Bridge construction project is expected to begin in June and last for about two years. During that time, one lane in each direction of the lower level will be closed for rehabilitation.
bay ridge courier

oh great, just in time for summer beach/weekend getaway traffic.

they want me to sty here and buy my beer
not in nj

oh its a blast listening to those damn jack hammers every night till about 3 in the morning.

not the lirr but nj transit

the ever thinking DOT

when has a contractor ever met the deadlinfe in NYC

it took them 3 years to do the bay 8 street off ramp
and thats what 100 feet

First it was the idea of bringing back the two way toll months ago, now this. I understand bridges always need to be repaired, and updated, but at the expense of we the tax payer, also at the expense at an all day rush hour for quite a while, wouldn't it make sense to due this either after the holidays, or do the road work say overnight, when there are hardly any cars on the roads.

So many people go back and forth through the bridge, if we spend 58 million, wouldn't it make sense for another few million to have the Brooklyn Ferry going to and from Staten Island, that way to give riders, and the workers a smooth transition for the several weeks. I know it may be a out of nowhere though, but wouldn't it help the situation.

Knowing the way the DOT works, much longer than the four weeks proposed this will take to fix it. To think they also want to raise the fares on the buses and subways as well.

i think somethings going on -- major sirens over here -- full blast.

waltz just called me he thought i was up that high on the ave

whatis going on

Brooklyn and Staten Island commuters rejoice!

The troublesome Verrazano Bridge reconstruction project will finish six months ahead of originally planned, making harrowing traffic nightmares disappear in fall 2008, instead of in the spring of 2009.

"The sooner the better," Josephine Beckmann, district manager of Community Board 10, said. "Traffic gridlock in Bay Ridge has just been awful, especially during the weekend and at peak time."

Congressman Vito Fossella (R-Bay Ridge) proposed to the Metropolitan Transit Authority in June that the agency hire additional workers to speed up the job.

And, after a couple months' negotiations, they came up with an agreement.

"I am delighted that the MTA followed up on my suggestion and reworked the contract to complete this project six months sooner," Fossella said, adding that the revised plan will add $6.2 million to the $58.8 million project for additional workers, who will work extra shifts.

The project, which started in early June, is giving all of the exit and entrance ramps to the bridge a makeover.

The asphalt and concrete decks, parapet walls and some utility lines are being removed and reconstructed.

This is the first time in 40 years that the ramps on the bridge have been touched.

One lane from each ramp will be closed at a time, so traffic will always be able to go over the bridge, but delays are inevitable.

"Mitigating the traffic is hard whenever a lane is closed like that," Beckmann said. "This is good news for all Staten Island and Bay Ridge residents, shoppers and workers."

Traffic jams are so bad that cops have to stand on every corner to direct traffic, making travel to anywhere in the area nearly impossible.

David Moretti, acting president of the MTA, said the agency is doing the best it can to ease congestion.

"We regret that the deck project causes customer inconvenience, but closing the lanes is the only way we can do the work safely," he said. "When the work is complete, the approaches will be like new, with a life cycle of another 45-50 years of service to customers."

Drivers in Staten Island and Brooklyn were delighted to hear the news.

"It will make life a lot easier, and I am very happy about it," Avi Lesman, 28, a Bay Ridge resident, said of the traffic near his home. "The traffic here is bad enough without them fixing anything. This just makes it worse."

from Matt Lysiak's Brooklyn Paper/Yellow Hooker column, in the "kitchen sink" section:

You, too, can sue the Metropolitan Transportation Authority! In an effort to give a voice to commuters, Rep. Vito Fossella (R–Bay Ridge) is urging residents to e-mail complaints about driving since the start of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge construction, which Fossella will submit to a judge as part of his lawsuit against the MTA. E-mail testimonials to FixTheVZB@gmail.com

Oh, no, it means a lot to us as well! Whenever Tara and I are travelling home and we get within sight of the Verrazano, we know that we are almost home...and that is a really good feeling.

When HRJ was little whenever we got within sight of the bridge I would hear a squeaky voice from the back of the car.....my bridge Mommy, my bridge, we're almost home. Now days I say it and all I get is MOM that's soooo not funny!

mine use to think that the bridge took you back to America (blondes!)

hungry's not a country but hungary is. even firefox won't help you there.

Traffic from the ongoing restoration of the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge has caused such intense gridlock on local streets around the span...
Bridge fix driving ’em nuts! by Noah C. Zuss for The Brooklyn Paper

Posted By: Wiz's Better HalfI just had to add this. Although it might not mean a lot to youse guys, but it means a lot to me. I saw the Verrazano Bridge in all its splendor as I was landing in Newark Airport tonight.

Thankful People:Kevo

Final approach, outta SJU, to RWY 04 JFK... saw the same...
Great feeling..

T-

No, I wish. That was my plan A back in the day, until Embry Riddle ( flight school in FL ) decided that all my engineering credits including advanced calculus, linear algebra, and partial differential equations weren't enough to satisfy the "Introduction to Mathematics" course.

I fly every other week to PR for work and started really getting back into aviation lately.

That shot was taken 2 weeks ago

Posted By: AltereedemT-

No, I wish. That was my plan A back in the day, until Embry Riddle ( flight school in FL ) decided that all my engineering credits including advanced calculus, linear algebra, and partial differential equations weren't enough to satisfy the "Introduction to Mathematics" course.

Wow, that is crazy. What exactly were they looking for?