Project Identification, Evolution, Chapter II Conditions and Needs, and Objectives This chapter identifies and describes the project’s limits, the history of the corridor and project, and the purpose and need for the project. A. PROJECT IDENTIFICATION This section describes the type and location of the Kosciuszko Bridge Project. A.1. Project Type The primary objective of the Kosciuszko Bridge Project is the evaluation of possible improvements to the Kosciuszko Bridge, which crosses Newtown Creek between Brooklyn and Queens. The alternatives evaluated in this document include rehabilitation of the existing bridge with construction of a new parallel bridge or replacement of the existing bridge in its entirety. This effort may also include construction of a bikeway/walkway, intersection reconstruction, and safety improvements to the highway and to local streets affected by the project. A.2. Project Location/Description The Kosciuszko Bridge carries a 1.1-mile segment of the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (BQE, Interstate 278) from Morgan Avenue in the borough of Brooklyn (Kings County) to the Long Island Expressway (LIE) interchange in the borough of Queens (Queens County) as shown in Figure II-1, “Project Location.” The Main Span of the bridge carries BQE traffic over Newtown Creek, which forms the border between Brooklyn and Queens in this area. North of the bridge, the BQE connects to the LIE and the Grand Central Parkway, which extends to LaGuardia International Airport and across the Triborough Bridge leading into Manhattan and the Bronx. To the south, the BQE connects to the Williamsburg, Manhattan, and Brooklyn Bridges, as well as the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, leading into Manhattan, and continues south to the Gowanus Expressway and across the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, leading to Staten Island. While the BQE is signed as, and generally recognized as an east-west route, the highway runs in a north- south direction through the project area. As one of New York City’s few north-south interstates, the BQE serves commuter and local traffic as well as a significant amount of truck traffic, which is prohibited from neighboring parkways. The limits of the project, shown in Figure II-2, “Kosciuszko Bridge Project Limits,” extend from Morgan Avenue in the Greenpoint/Williamsburg neighborhood of Brooklyn to the LIE in the West Maspeth neighborhood of Queens and include the entrance and exit ramps in the area of Vandervoort Avenue in Brooklyn. While the project is focused on the rehabilitation/replacement of the existing structure from reference marker 278IX2M24121 just west of Morgan Avenue to Kosciuszko Bridge Project II-1 March 2007 Draft Environmental Impact Statement Section II.A FIGURE II-1: PROJECT LOCATION 278IX5M34005 at the beginning of the LIE interchange, it will be necessary to do work outside of these limits in order to safely maintain traffic throughout construction. Figure II-3, “Project Segments and Descriptions Used in the DEIS,” shows the segments of the project limits that will be used throughout the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) to describe the Kosciuszko Bridge. The through truss (Main Span) is named such because vehicles travel through the truss and was used here to allow greater clearance for ships. The deck trusses on the Brooklyn and Queens Approaches support the roadway from below. See Section II.C.1.o for further explanation of the types of structures that make up the bridge. Because the bridge crosses over and, at the on- and off-ramps in Brooklyn, interacts with several local streets and intersections, the project also includes some physical changes to streets and intersections immediately adjacent to the highway. Kosciuszko Bridge Project II-2 March 2007 Draft Environmental Impact Statement Section II.B B. PROJECT EVOLUTION Originally built in 1939, the Kosciuszko Bridge has been in service for over 65 years, during which time it has been expanded and repaired a number of times. B.1. Construction of the Kosciuszko Bridge A bridge across Newtown Creek has existed in the vicinity of the Kosciuszko Bridge as far back as 1811, when the “Penny Bridge” was constructed where present-day Meeker Avenue terminates near Gardner Avenue. Named for the toll that was charged to cross it, this bridge was in operation until the existing bridge, called the “Meeker Avenue Bridge” at the time, was completed and opened August 24, 1939. The following year, in July 1940, Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia renamed the bridge after the Polish-born Revolutionary War hero, Thaddeus Kosciuszko. Built prior to the BQE and the LIE, the bridge connected to Meeker Avenue between Morgan and Kingsland Avenues in Brooklyn and to Laurel Hill Boulevard near 54th Road in Queens. The first section of the BQE, between the Williamsburg and Kosciuszko Bridges, was completed in 1950, with the rest of the highway completed by 1960. A major reconstruction of the BQE began in 1966 at the BQE-LIE Interchange that created the existing ramp configuration. Another major reconstruction effort began in 1967 which included replacement of the original 220 mm (8-1/2”) thick reinforced concrete slab with a 110 mm (4-1/4”) thick concrete filled steel grid deck; replacement of barriers, railings, lampposts, crossbeams, and the drainage system; and elimination of the two 2.4 m (8’-0”) wide sidewalks. For additional information on the history of the Kosciuszko Bridge and the surrounding area, see Section IV.B.3.d and Appendix M. B.2. Recent Maintenance Efforts Over the past two decades, the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) has spent considerable time and effort maintaining the Kosciuszko Bridge in safe working order. Whenever maintenance or repair efforts are conducted they not only have a financial impact in terms of the tax dollars that must be spent, but they also result in disruption to traffic operations. NYSDOT makes every effort to minimize operational effects by doing work during off-peak hours, but in a dense urban area such as this where there is very little “off-peak” period, every maintenance project results in impacts to traffic, either in the form of congestion delays or detours of vehicles from the highway. The following list briefly describes the maintenance and repair activities undertaken by NYSDOT over the last two decades. For the specific location of identified spans, see section II.C.1.o. August 1989 – Repair of cracked fascia stringers in Span 80 and Spans 91 through 100. April 1990 – Removal of old grease in all expansion bearings to inspect the bearings, and replacement with new grease. October 1992 – Repair of cracked crossbeam and stringer in Span 86. November 1992 – Repair of crossbeam in Span 86. Kosciuszko Bridge Project II-3 March 2007 Draft Environmental Impact Statement Section II.B December 1993 to December 1996 (Interim Bridge Rehabilitation Project, Contract D254603) – Encasement of reinforced concrete piers with a 200 mm (8”) thick layer of concrete, replacement of deteriorated overlay, and miscellaneous structural steel repairs. March 1999 – Installation of safety netting in Spans 80 thru 88 and Spans 91 thru 100 to catch falling fractured bolts from crossbeam-to-stringer connections. September 2000 to December 2003 (Interim Bridge Rehabilitation Project, Contract D258476) – Cleaning, painting and miscellaneous structural steel repairs. May 2002 – Removal of deteriorated polymer overlay and replacement with SuperPave Hot Mix Asphalt on approximately 45% of roadway area on deck truss and through truss spans. October 2002 – Emergency repair of a hole that developed in the deck on Span 102 in Queens (eastbound direction). June 2003 – Emergency repair of cracked box beam between stringers in Span 98. July 2005 – Repair of the overhead sign structure on Span 97. July 2005 to December 2006 – Resurfacing and deck repairs for bridge and ramps. NYSDOT continues to maintain the bridge in safe, working order. However, as can be seen by the list above, doing so is becoming increasingly costly and disruptive. As described in Section II.C.2, a goal of this project is to find a cost-effective solution to the structural problems on the bridge. Continuing to maintain the bridge in the current manner not only fails to address the operational problems on the bridge, but will also require continued frequent maintenance at both significant financial and mobility costs. B.3. 1995 Traffic Operations Study Based on the findings of biennial inspections conducted in the 1980s and early 1990s that found the overall condition of the viaduct to be “poor” to “fair,” NYSDOT initiated the Kosciuszko Bridge Traffic Operations Study as part of a long range, comprehensive project to determine how best to address the deteriorated conditions of the bridge while minimizing impacts on motorists and the community during construction. That study, which looked at the same 1.8 km (1.1 mile) segment as this project, considered alternatives to rehabilitate the bridge, with and without the construction of a new adjacent bridge. The project, which involved extensive community outreach, included a significant traffic data collection effort, an origin-destination study, accident analysis and the projection of traffic demand to 2035. The study found that, while from a structural standpoint, the bridge could be rehabilitated one- third at a time by closing two lanes at a time, the local street network was incapable of handling the diverted traffic. It also found that, without any additional capacity, operating conditions on the existing bridge would continue to deteriorate, resulting in Level of Service (LOS) F conditions on the highway and several ramps. These findings formed the basis of the alternatives development process for this project. Kosciuszko Bridge Project II-4 March 2007 Draft Environmental Impact Statement Section II.B Copies of the Kosciuszko Bridge Traffic Operations Study can be obtained by contacting: Robert Adams, P.E. New York State Department of Transportation Hunters Point Plaza 47-40 21st Street Long Island City, NY 11101 Phone: (718) 482-4683 Email: [email protected] B.4.