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City Island Bridge (old)
Coordinates	40°51′23″N 73°47′36″W / 40.8563°N 73.7933°W / 40.8563; -73.7933
Carries	3 lanes of City Island Road
Crosses	Eastchester Bay
Locale	The Bronx and City Island in New York City
Maintained by	New York City Department of Transportation
Characteristics
Design	Swing bridge
Material	Steel and stone
Total length	950 feet (290 m)
No. of spans	7
Piers in water	6
Clearance below	8 feet (2.4 m)
History
Construction start	1899
Opened	July 4, 1901
Closed	December 18, 2015
Statistics
Daily traffic	14,313 (2009)
Location

The City Island Bridge is a bridge in the New York City borough of the Bronx, connecting City Island with Rodman's Neck on the mainland. The name refers to two bridges: the original bridge from 1901 to 2015, and a new bridge will open in 2017.

Original bridge

The original bridge opened for traffic on July 4, 1901. The bridge was of stone and steel construction, and spanned 950 ft (290 m). Construction began in 1899 and completed in 1901, at a cost of $200,000. It consisted of five fixed spans and a central swing section which was converted to a fixed span in 1963. It closed on December 18, 2015.

Replacement bridge

To replace the deteriorating bridge, the city originally intended to build a cable-stayed bridge, with a 150 ft (46 m) high tower, 13 ft (4.0 m) wide at the top, with a base of 26 ft (7.9 m). Vertical clearance above high water would be 12 ft (3.7 m). The new bridge would be located in the same footprint as the existing bridge, although it would be 17 ft (5.2 m) wider to accommodate three standard-width traffic lanes, a bicycle lane and a pedestrian walkway.

The original schedule was for the project to begin in 2007 with completion in 2010. The project was then postponed until June 2012. Due to the project postponement, during 2010 repairs were made to the existing bridge deck, piers, and west abutment. Due to a lack of funding the project was delayed once more until the city announced it would accept bids in late 2012, with Tutor Perini selected as general contractor in February 2013. As of 2005 the estimated cost of the project was $50 million. As of 2009 the estimate increased to $120 million due to redesigns and the addition of related projects. The final bid came in at $102.7 million.

Some residents, however, opposed the design of the cable-stayed bridge and felt that its tower would be out of character with the low-rise homes on City Island. Opponents of the bridge design filed a lawsuit against the city on November 6, 2013. A Bronx Supreme Court judge granted a temporary injunction on that date. In December 2013 the court lifted the injunction, but ruled that the city must conduct public hearings. The city's prior consultations with the island community, which began during the early design stages, had been informal. The court's ruling requires the city to follow its Uniform Land Use Review Procedure, which includes local Community Board hearings.

On May 5, 2014, the original bridge plans were scrapped, and the de Blasio administration chose to go with a slightly cheaper and much shorter causeway-style bridge. The bridge would be completed by 2017 were it to be approved. In 2015, a temporary steel bridge was halfway completed. It reaches from the southern side of the channel to the center where huge steel barges were busy assembling the rest of the temporary span. Stoplights were placed at both ends of the open bridge to facilitate construction. The temporary steel bridge connects to City Island Park, which will be replaced by a new park after construction. On December 16, 2015, the New York City Department of Transportation (DOT) conducted a road test on the temporary steel bridge by running heavy equipment including fire trucks over the bridge. The DOT conducted the tests to ease residents' concerns about the integrity of the temporary structure. On December 18, 2015, the original bridge was closed to vehicular traffic and traffic was routed to the temporary bridge. Shortly after that, demolition began of the original bridge. It is currently demolished and a new bridge is being constructed on the same site as the 1901 bridge.

References

1. "City Island Bridge Opened". The New York Times. July 5, 1901. p. 14. Retrieved 2010-01-15.
2. ^ New York City Department of Transportation (NYCDOT)(2011). "2010 Bridges and Tunnels Annual Condition Report." Accessed 2012-01-30.
3. "The New City Island Bridge. Work Begun Yesterday on the $200,000 Steel and Stone Structure". The New York Times. January 20, 1899. p. 4. Retrieved 2009-08-15.
4. Dolensek, Barbara (April 2005). "Here Comes the Bridge" (PDF). The Island Current. City Island. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
5. NYCDOT (2004). "2003 Bridges and Tunnels Annual Condition Report." p. 36. Accessed 2009-09-11.
6. Joel Russell (21 February 2013). "Hurricane Sandy Drives Tutor Perini Results". San Fernando Valley Business Journal. Retrieved 2013-06-14.
7. H. Perahia, L. King, K. Batra, S. Jarosz (2005). "City Island Cable-Stayed Bridge in New York City." Presented at the 3rd New York City Bridge Conference, New York, September 12–13, 2005.
8. Lombardi, Frank (May 11, 2009). "Span plan crosses $120M: 'Signature' City Island bridge plan's all wet, critics say". Daily News. New York. Retrieved 2009-09-11.
9. "Tutor Perini Announces Pending Award for $102.7 Million City Island Road Bridge Replacement" (Press release). Business Wire. 21 February 2013. Retrieved 2013-06-14.
10. Bindley, Katherine (November 14, 2008). "In the 'Nantucket of New York,' a Bridge to Agitation". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-08-15.
11. Slattery, Denis (2013-11-08). "City Island residents sue to block $102 million, 180-foot-tall bridge to mainland Bronx". New York Daily News.
12. Slattery, Denis (2013-12-27). "City Islanders hail ruling on proposed bridge as minor victory over city". New York Daily News.
13. Rocchio, Patrick (2014-01-07). "Judge rules on City Island Bridge". Bronx Times. Bronx, NY.
14. Thornton McEnery (5 May 2014). "City bows to pressure on controversial bridge plan". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
15. http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/bronx/officials-bridge-differences-city-island-residents-article-1.1779294
16. ^ "City Island Temporary Bridge Undergoes Load Test". WCBS-TV. 16 December 2015. Retrieved 16 December 2015.

External links

• Bridge and Tunnel Club website (photos)
• City Island Bridge history at bridgesnyc.com

• Bridges in New York City
• Bridges completed in 1901
• Bridges in the Bronx
• Swing bridges in the United States
• Bike paths in New York
• Road bridges in New York