New Modern Structure Will Replace Meadow Hill Road Bridge in Newburgh

Bridge to Close to Traffic in Late Afternoon on Friday, June 13

Bridge Will Be Closed Until Next Summer

Signed Detours Will Be in Place

The New York State Thruway Authority today announced the start of a $7.8 million project to replace the Meadow Hill Road bridge over the Thruway (I-87) in the Town of Newburgh, Orange County. The 72-year-old bridge will be replaced with a modern structure. The Meadow Hill Road bridge will close to all traffic at the end of next week—Friday, June 13—and will remain closed until Summer 2026. The new span will be wider, add a sidewalk and have a higher vertical clearance to enhance safety.

“The Thruway Authority is continually investing its toll dollars back into our 570-mile superhighway network to make sure our roads and bridges meet the needs of the future,” Thruway Authority Executive Director Frank G. Hoare, Esq. said. “The replacement of Meadow Hill Road bridge over the Thruway in Orange County will improve the overall travel experience for the thousands of motorists who use it each day.”

The Meadow Hill Road bridge is scheduled to close to traffic in the late afternoon on Friday, June 13, weather permitting. There will be two signed detour routes, each utilizing state and local roads including South Plank Road (State Route 52), Union Avenue (State Route 300), State Route 17K, Monarch Drive, and Fletcher Road. Both of these detour routes are shorter than five miles. Approximately 4,100 vehicles travel the Meadow Hill Road bridge daily.

Variable message signs in the area will advise motorists of the upcoming closure and detours. A temporary traffic signal also will be in place at Route 17K and Fletcher Drive.
Demolition of the bridge is planned to occur in July and last about one week. The work will take place at night for the safety of the project’s workers and motorists. Details about Thruway lane closures and traffic stops will be provided in advance of the work.

The public should check the Thruway Authority’s Facebook and X accounts for the latest travel advisories.

With an anticipated service life of 75 years, the new bridge will carry two 11-foot-wide travel lanes in each direction, a 6-foot-wide shoulder on the south side and a 5-foot-wide shoulder with a sidewalk that will be 5 feet 5 inches wide on the north side. The project will improve the riding surface, install new bridge railings, and raise the bridge’s vertical clearance over the Thruway from 14 feet 3 inches to 16 feet 10 inches at milepost 60.95 to enhance safety and reduce the chance of bridge hits.

The project is expected to be completed in Summer 2026.
Harrison & Burrowes Bridge Constructors, Inc. of Glenmont, N.Y., is the project contractor.

About the Thruway Authority
The Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway, built in the early 1950s, is one of the oldest components of the National Interstate Highway System and one of the longest toll roads in the nation. The maintenance and operation of the Thruway system is funded primarily by tolls. The Thruway Authority does not receive any dedicated federal, state or local tax dollars and is paid for by those who drive the Thruway, including one-third of drivers from out of state.

In 2024, the Thruway Authority processed more than 400 million transactions and motorists drove 8.2 billion miles on the Thruway. The Authority’s approved 2025 Budget invests a total of $477.3 million in dedicated funding for capital projects across the Thruway system beginning in 2025, an increase of more than $33 million compared to the approved 2024 budget. The increased investment will lead to work on approximately 61 percent of the Thruway’s more than 2,800 pavement lane miles as well as the replacement or rehabilitation of 20 percent of the Thruway’s 817 bridges.

The Thruway is one of the safest roadways in the country with a fatality rate far below the nationwide index, and toll rates are among the lowest in the country compared to similar toll roads. The Thruway’s base passenger vehicle toll rate is less than $0.05 per mile, compared to the Ohio Turnpike ($0.06 per mile), the New Jersey Turnpike (up to $0.39 per mile) and the Pennsylvania Turnpike ($0.16 per mile).

The Thruway Authority’s top priority is the safety of our employees and customers. In 2024, two Thruway Authority employees died and another was seriously injured in separate incidents while working on the Thruway. The lives of Thruway Authority employees, roadway workers and emergency personnel depend on all of those who travel the highway. Motorists should stay alert and pay attention while driving, slow down in work zones and move over when they see a vehicle on the side of the road. The state’s Move Over Law, which was expanded in March 2024, requires drivers to slow down and move over for all vehicles stopped along the roadway. Safety is a shared responsibility.

For more information, follow the Thruway on Facebook, X and Instagram, or visit the Thruway website.

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