[NYguy]

http://www.thehudsonindependent.com/...-bridge-update

New Tappan Zee Bridge Update


by Brian Conybeare
02 January 2014

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced on Dec. 19, 2013, that the New York State Thruway Authority and the U.S. Department of Transportation closed on a record-setting $1.6 billion low-interest loan for the New NY Bridge project.

The loan, which comes from the federal Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) program, will help finance the $3.9 billion project; it carries an interest rate of less than 4 percent, and very favorable repayment terms that will help keep future tolls on the new bridge as low as possible. Governor Cuomo has also called for the creation of a Toll and Financing Task Force to look at possible additional sources of revenue and consider overall toll rates, as well as potential discounts for commuters and local residents.

Meanwhile, construction is starting to ramp up on this historic project. The first of about 1,000 permanent pilings are already being installed by Tappan Zee Constructors, LLC (TZC) to support the new twin-span bridge, which is designed to last 100 years or more. There are approximately four dozen TZC barges, boats and other vessels on the Hudson right now, and that number could double by this coming summer.

The year ahead will be a very big year for the project. Already, about 600 direct jobs have been created and that number will rise in the coming months as more workers join in the effort. Some 500 companies have benefitted from the project so far, with many of them calling the Hudson Valley region home.
Our goal is to keep the project on schedule and on budget while maintaining an unprecedented level of public involvement and transparency.

http://nypost.com/2013/12/31/monster...an-zee-bridge/

Monster crane coming to hoist new Tappan Zee


By Rebecca Harshbarger
December 31, 2013

A monster crane is traveling on a 6000-mile odyssey form California to New York through the Panama Canal to build the new Tappan Zee bridge.

The powerful 400-foot floating crane, which sits on a barge, has been dubbed the Left Coast Lifter after its work on the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge.

One of the largest cranes in the United States, it can lift up to 750 tons.

The Lifter has traveled over 1,600 nautical miles so far since it left Oakland Harbor on Dec. 21, according to officials.

It is currently at sea near Punta San Telmo in Mexico, and is expected to pass through the Panama Canal in mid-January.

It will reach New York in February after 6 to 8 weeks of travel.

The massive crane, which will float on a barge in the Hudson River, can lift up to 1750 tons.

It will take down the current Tappan Zee Bridge, the longest span in New York, and build the new one’s structure and foundation.

The new bridge is expected to cost $3.9 billion, and its first span will open in 2016. It is slated to finish in 2018.

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