Five years have passed since the opening of the first half of the bridge Gov. Mario M. Cuomo – a crossing still referred to by many who use it as the new Tappan Zee Bridge. Here is a look back at its development, controversies and current state.
Long planned and consistently dismissed as too expensive or logistically difficult, the replacement of the crumbling 1955 Tappan Zee Bridge – aka Governor Malcolm Wilson’s Tappan Zee Bridge – connecting Westchester and Rockland counties began in 2012, when first-term Governor Andrew M. Cuomo placed the project at the top of his agenda in his annual State of the State address.
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo drives a 1932 Packard as his girlfriend, TV chef Sandra Lee, blows a kiss as they cross the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, Friday, Sept. 7, 2018, in Nyack, NY Cuomo has officially opened the second span of the new Hudson River Bridge named after his father.
Mark Lennihan/AP Photo
The project, one of the largest infrastructure projects in North America, has been deployed by Cuomo for years as the quintessential symbol of its results-oriented style of governance (“It’s time to do something”) , he said in 2012. ).
The massive logistical task, taken on by a consortium called Tappan Zee Constructors, would cost around $4 billion.
During the 2016 Democratic National Convention, a graphic representation of the gigantic tuning fork design of the “New New York Bridge” was all over the hotel that served as the state delegation’s base of operations.
Bolted plates connect sections of the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge on Tuesday, October 6, 2020, on Piermont Avenue in South Nyack, NY The bridge carries I-287 across the Hudson River.
Will Waldron/Times UnionBroken bolts
In March 2021 – as the Cuomo sexual misconduct scandal escalated – the Times Union published Brendan J. Lyons’ eight-month investigation into a whistleblower’s report that employees of Tappan Zee Builders had tried to cover up the fact that a worrying number of the high-strength bolts that held the span together were breaking during the assembly process, including at Coeymans Port. The story raised questions not only about the attempted cover-up, but also about the state’s Thruway Authority’s response to the evidence presented by whistleblower James McNall.
Chronology: How the whistleblower’s report was handled
In 2017, the state attorney general’s office launched an investigation into the issues raised by McNall. That investigation, which came amid parallel investigations by the Thruway Authority and the state inspector general’s office, resulted in a $2 million settlement.
Faulty bolts used in the construction of the Gov Mario M. Cuomo Bridge during its assembly at Coeymans Port are on display Saturday, March 6, 2021 in Colonie, NY Some of the high tensile bolts would break under the first stage of tightening. Many were delivered to the job site with cracks already visible in the heads.
Will Waldron/Times UnionThe story’s publication prompted letters from elected officials, including the state Senate investigative committee, to the Thruway authority, which insisted the bridge was structurally sound. The subsequent state Assembly impeachment inquiry into a variety of scandals swirling around Cuomo initially promised to look into the bridge issue, but ultimately sidestepped the issue in the report that was released months later. Cuomo’s exit.
In April, a judge ordered the consortium to pay McNall’s attorneys $1.69 million to cover the legal team’s fees and expenses.
Under any other name
Amid debate over whether the new bridge should retain Tappan Zee’s name or that of former Governor Malcolm Wilson, Cuomo and the Legislative Assembly at the end of the 2017 session quickly passed a large omnibus bill which, among its provisions, named the new term after Gov. Mario M. Cuomo, who died in January 2015. Gov. Andrew Cuomo accepted the honor for his father and hinted that it was the idea of the Legislative Assembly.
In 2019, the Thruway Authority had to modify the signs to add the late governor’s initial.
A year after the resignation of the second Governor Cuomo, legislation was introduced to repeal the current name and bring back “Tappan Zee”, but no further action has been taken.
A Change.Org petition calling for the revival of the old name attracted more than a quarter of a million supporters.
The current toll
Crossing the bridge costs $3.45 for regular commuters with an E-ZPass, with the toll dropping to $7.48 for those crossing without an E-ZPass. Tolls vary depending on the day of the week and the type of vehicle.
