For Immediate Release: April 22, 2011
I-87 Between Exit 23 and Exit 24 Set for Reconstruction
Thruway Project to Add Third Lane in Each Direction
Work is now under way for the reconstruction of the Thruway between Exit 23 and Exit 24, including the addition of a third lane in both directions, the New York State Thruway Authority announced. The project is scheduled to continue through the fall of 2013.
Features of the 7-mile long project include the replacement of the existing pavement with new concrete pavement. Also included is the installation of nine segments of noise barriers and replacement of the highway drainage system.
The project includes the repainting of bridges that carry Delaware Avenue, New Scotland Avenue and Western Avenue over the Thruway.
Thruway Executive Director Michael R. Fleischer said: "Some of the existing pavement along this segment dates from the initial construction of the Thruway system and is now more than 50 years old. This project is part of the Thruway's effort to make infrastructure investments to provide reliable and safe travel for the millions of motorists who travel the Thruway each year."
Rifenburg Construction Inc. of Troy, N.Y., was the low bidder for the project at $99.7 million. There were seven other bidders.
The first phase of the construction will include widening the northbound right and left shoulders, replacing the existing median drainage, installing nine noise barriers and constructing traffic crossovers at both ends of the project for use in next year’s pavement reconstruction.
Traffic pattern changes for the 2011 construction season will include nighttime single-lane closures in the northbound direction for shoulder widening and daytime travel lane shifts. There may be occasional, short-term single lane configurations during the daytime.
Speed limit will be reduced to 55 mph for the duration of the project. Motorists are reminded that penalties and fines increase for traffic violations within a posted work zone.
The construction zone on I-87 extends from milepost 141.3 to milepost 148.4, between Exit 23 (Albany, I-787) and Exit 24 (Albany, I-90, I-87).
The Thruway Authority manages 2,818 lane miles of highway and more than 800 bridges. More than 246.7 million trips were taken on the Thruway in 2009, representing more than 8.1 billion miles traveled.
For the latest information about the 2005-2011 Capital Program, please visit http://www.thruway.ny.gov/projectsandstudies/capitalprogram/index.html .
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