Fourteen years ago, the New York State Thruway Authority proposed a plan to replace the then-44-year-old Tappan Zee Bridge, a 6,014-ft-long, seven-lane crossing carrying Interstates 87 and 287 over the Hudson River. That proposal followed decades of Band-Aid work to keep the bridge viable, including a $20.8-million panel rehabilitation in 1997 (ENR 6/9/97 p. 19). The cost of a replacement, the agency estimated, would be $4 billion. The time line was forecast for 10 years.
Two years later, in 2002, the environmental review process began. In 2011, it was still ongoing. But then came a perfect alignment of key events, says Thomas Madison Jr., the authority's executive director, that allowed New York state agencies to complete a new a permitting process, hire Tappan Zee Constructors and start construction in less than three years. "The great thing is that we didn't cut any corners," he adds.