Public Hearing: Traffic Problems on Gun Hill Rd

This Thursday, the Department of Transportation will host a public hearing to get input and ideas for dealing with congestion and safety issues on East Gun Hill Road, between Jerome Avenue and White Plains Road. See the flyer below for more details.

Gun Hill Road Flyer_February 10 2011

Training Exercise Tonight on E.204th

This is just a test!

From approximately 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., the Office of Emergency Planning’s CERT (Community Emergency Response Team) program will be conducting a training exercise at the East 204^th Street underpass between Valentine and Villa Avenues. Please note that pedestrian and vehicular access will not be allowed through the underpass during the exercise. Please do not be alarmed by any training or exercises being held, they are intended to benefit the public's safety.

According to CERT's website, the "Program educates people about disaster preparedness for hazards that may impact their area and trains them in basic disaster response skills, such as fire safety, light search and rescue, team organization, and disaster medical operations."

If you have any questions regarding this matter, please feel free to contact District Manager, Fernando Tirado of the Community Board 7 at - (718) 933-5650 / 51.

Alexander Hamilton Bridge Rehabilitation: Largest NYSDOT Project Ever

This morning, the Bronx News Network got an inside look at the beginnings of New York State’s Department of Transportation’s (NYSDOT) largest construction project to date: the rehabilitation of Alexander Hamilton Bridge. The 1,485-foot bridge, which conn

ects the Bronx to the Manhattan community of Washington Heights via Interstate 95, has already begun its new $407 million “facelift.” The project, slated to finish in December 2013, will “benefit the entire northeast corridor, improving safety and relieving congestion,” said Governor David Paterson in a press release this morning.

 

At this morning’s groundbreaking ceremony, officials emphasized two benefits of the project: better infrastructure and new jobs. While speaking at a podium stationed under the 505-foot steel arch of the Alexander Hamilton, Stanley Gee, Acting

 Commissioner of NYSDOT, said, “For the first time in nearly half a century, the Alexander Hamilton Bridge will be rehabilitated. This will allow us to continue to put people back to work to re-charge the economy… while improving quality of life by relieving congestion.”

 

To combat congestion, the 46 year-old bridge’s pavement deck, which currently consists of four travel lanes in each direction, will be expanded to allow traffic to flow despite stalled vehicles. Other work includes the maintenance of ramps that make up the Highbridge Interchange between the Cross Bronx and the Major Deegan Expressway, along with the creation of playgrounds along Amsterdam Avenue in Manhattan.

 

While the project’s main aim is to improve transportation between the Bronx and Manhattan, Denise Richardson, Managing Director of the General Contractors Association of New York, says the project could not come at a better moment. “In tough economic times, it is important to invest in infrastructure,” she said. Citing the projected creation of at least 200 to 300 new jobs for New York State workers “[to be] hired from the union halls”, Richardson sees the project as an effective economic stimulus for the State.

 

Though the long-term benefits of the project appear to be noteworthy, little discussion was paid at the press conference to the inconveniences that will be posed to commuters who use the bridge daily. Once the bridge’s rehabilitation project takes full flight in coming months, 200,000 commuters may experience “brief lane closures” and “occasional weekend closures” until the project’s completion, the NYSDOT stated this morning. Adam Levine, NYSDOT spokesman, told us the city is going to be working hard to prevent widespread congestion caused by construction. “We’re trying hard to avoid widespread back-up,” he said. “It’s going to be a challenge, and at times we’ll have to shut down work to accommodate commuters.”

 

Despite the headaches the bridge's rehabilitation is bound to cause some commuters, Levine says that by reaching out to local community boards, residents can get construction updates. “We’re having monthly meetings with Community Boards 4 and 5.” Deputy Bronx Borough President Aurelia Greene added, “Though this will be an inconvenience, this project is well worth the while.”

 

Residents can also receive construction updates, and learn more about the project at www.nysdot.gov/AHB.

Bronx News (other than term limits) Roundup: Oct. 23

NY1's Dean Meminger reports on how the DOT plans to help alleviate confusion and congestion at one of the busiest intersections in the Bronx -- 3rd Avenue and 149th Street.

A judge ordered that a Bronx building owner has 30 days to fix 269 outstanding violations or he will be forced to forfeit the property to the city.

Stella D'Oro workers are striking in protest of a wage cut imposed by the company's new owners.

The Daily News profiles Eva Bornstein of the Lehman Center for Performing Arts.

Native Bronxite and performer David Gonzalez (not to be confused with the NY Times reporter of the same name) is gaining notoriety for his show, which features "classic tales with a lot of funk."

The new Metro-North Station at Yankee Stadium is moving along swimmingly.