Trucking news and briefs for Monday, Jan. 1, 2024:
The Plattekill Service Area will also be closed during this operation.
Closed to traffic since May, the Brookside Road overpass was hit by over-height vehicles nine times in 2023 and 27 times since 2019. These repeated collisions have resulted in considerable damage to the steel that supports the overpass and decreased the amount of weight it can safely carry, the authority reported. Following regular monitoring and multiple inspections, the Thruway and consulting engineers have determined the overpass should be removed in the interest of public safety.
Built in 1954, the four-span continuous four-girder bridge carries Brookside Road (milepost 74.17) over the Thruway -- one lane of traffic in each direction -- in the town of New Paltz in Ulster County. It had a vertical clearance is 14.2 feet, which has been reduced to 14 feet due to the multiple bridge strikes in both directions, including one on Oct. 30 when its girders above the northbound lanes was struck by a truck hauling a forklift.
Here’s what motorists and residents should expect on the evening of Saturday, Jan. 6, according to the Thruway:
During this work, both travel lanes in the southbound direction between exits 18 and 17 will remain open. However, the two southbound lanes are scheduled to close the following weekend (January 13-14) to remove the remainder of the overpass, weather permitting.
