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In less than five weeks, the unofficial start of the summer season will be here. For locals, seasonal homeowners and tourists, that means a significant uptick in traffic getting on and off Long Beach Island – an issue being addressed by the $350 million Route 72/Manahawkin Bay Bridge project.
Until then, what the traffic pattern to and from the Island will look like on any given day is anyone’s guess. For a few days toward the end of April, two lanes in both directions were open. Then a lane in each direction shifted, causing slight delays depending on the time of day.
One or two nights of paving will occur later this spring or early summer, said Stephen Schapiro, communications director for the state Department of Transportation. “Once that work is scheduled, and there are more details, the NJDOT will provide information before that work is done.”
Aside from those limited days and times, the normal balance of two lanes in each direction will be available throughout the summer, he said.
“The project is being accomplished in multiple stages, and was designed to preserve the normal two travel lanes in each direction during the busy summer season from mid-May through mid-September,” Schapiro said, adding, “during the daytime and weekends. The contractor is allowed single-lane closures overnight and during the off-season, but one lane will be maintained in each direction.”
Work on scour protection, drainage and landscaping/retaining wall along the multi-use walkways will continue until the fall, he said. This work, which occurs alongside and underneath the east and west thoroughfare bridges, isn’t expected to interfere with traffic, he said.
Bridge scour is when sediment, such as sand or rocks, is washed away from around the bridge piers or abutments, Schapiro said.
Simultaneously, phase four continues with the replacement of the old Causeway Bridge structure, and the reconstruction of the Hillards Thorofare, which runs from Stafford Township to a small rectangular island. The bridge deck was removed from the east abutment, and removal is nearing the halfway mark of the bridge as well, he said.
The contractor began building a trestle access on the north side of the bridge, starting from the east and moving west toward the channel, he said.
“Once the trestle is in place, the contractor will start removing the giant fascia beams,” Schapiro said, explaining a bridge deck rests on a series of beams that run between piers and the fascia beam is the outside, or facing, beam.
In the next month, repairs to the underside beam and pile cap on the Hillards Thorofare Bridge are expected to begin, Schapiro said, as is partial bridge deck demo on the south side. The contractor has already installed the shielding on the underside of the structure, and begun removing the existing southern parapet.
The contractor also began fitting new drainage along Route 72, near East Bay Avenue, including several crossings that tie together the inlets on both sides of the bridge, he said.
The project, which began in 2013, is expected to be completed in 2020, but the exact schedule depends on weather and other outside influences. The Causeway is the 3-mile expanse connecting the mainland, Stafford Township, to Ship Bottom.
Construction of the new span was completed last May, and is currently carrying two lanes of traffic in each direction while the existing bay bridge is being rehabbed. When that work is completed, the existing bridge will carry traffic west, or off, the Island and the new bridge will flow eastward. The new bridge is 2,400 feet long with a vertical clearance of 55 feet over Manahawkin Bay.
— Gina G. Scala Sand Paper
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