Last car crosses now-closed Tappan Zee Bridge north of NYC

Fox News ^ | 10/7/17

[Impala64ssa]

TARRYTOWN, N.Y. – With a 1929 Model A Ford Phaeton making the final 3.1-mile (4.99-kilometer) journey across the Hudson River, the Tappan Zee Bridge in New York City's northern suburbs has officially closed. Much of the fanfare that accompanied the opening of an adjacent $3.9 billion twin-span named in honor of former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo in August was missing Friday night when the Tappan Zee saw its final crossing, according to The Journal News . Seth Kestenbaum was the last driver to cross the 61-year-old bridge around 10 p.m. in the vintage Ford. "If you're first across the bridge, everyone's going to be repeating that," Kestenbaum said. "I'm the last one to cross the bridge. I've got to tell you, what an honor." One of the two new spans is now accommodating traffic flowing both ways between Westchester and Rockland counties in New York's northern suburbs on the bridge named for current Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo's father, who died in 2015. That span officially opened in late August for Rockland-bound drivers. Cuomo and other dignitaries were on hand for the ceremonial first ride across the bridge. On Friday night, Westchester-bound traffic was quietly diverted onto the same span. A temporary concrete divider will be used until the second span opens next year. The new bridge project was launched by the state Thruway Authority in 2013 after decades of political squabbling. The Tappan Zee opened in 1955. Eventually, the Thruway Authority will give away parts of the old bridge's deck and its moveable barrier system. Eight counties have requested some of the 150 deck panels to be salvaged for reuse in other bridges.

[Thibodeaux]

So, you don’t know and are just blowing smoke

[hsmomx3]

That is such an appropriate name. I like it a lot!

[Impala64ssa]

< Why not call it the Corleone Causeway? >
Or the Son of Sam Skyway? Better keep my big mouth shut or the libs will get more dumb ideas. Actually when the SJW snowflakes realize that Robert Moses' racial attitudes would make Bull Connor look like like MLK they just might demand the Moses Causeway on Long Island be renamed.

[mosesdapoet]

Thanks for the posting. Is that the old bridge? Salvaging pieces of it towards other uses good idea.

[vooch]

the new bridge is a extreme boondoggle; private enterprise would never have funded this. Tolls can’t even cover mai ten extra much less the capital costs.

[Parley Baer]

“Please provide you engineering cost analysis to justify your post”

One thing that has to be figured into the equation is the New York dimoKKKRAT politicians and their union buddy thugs.

[fieldmarshaldj]

I don’t see you offering any facts and figures to rebut my point about exorbitant costs, pal. Where are they ? Lay out the justification for spending $4 billion for a river bridge.

More to the point, why are you so incensed about somebody complaining about taxpayers being fleeced ? I’d expect such an indignant outrage on a leftist website, not on this one. Care to explain ?

[lewislynn]

I once needed a retaining wall engineered. The engineer's office had a counter. I walked up to the counter told the engineer what I needed, showed him the building plans and he backed up, looked under the counter and pulled out a STAMPED engineered drawing I paid him and left in less than 15 minutes.

The existing bridge that stood for decades was probably engineered using a slide rule and pencil and paper. The engineered drawings are probably still on file somewhere...How many times does the same thing at the same location have to be engineered? And for how many billion$?

[Exit148]

Yes— it will ALWAYS be the Tappan Zee to me. Lots of memories crossing it.

[fieldmarshaldj]

Maybe Thibby got his palms greased for this taxpayer fleece. Peculiar why $4b doesn’t seem to bother him none.

[dangus]

I think Cuomo is a great name for the bridge: Every bit of its support is crooked.

[Col Frank Slade]

Drove over the old Tappan Zee many times.

Scary old bridge. Held my breath.

[Doogle]

Eyep..I’ll vouch for that...scary

[foreverfree]

Bump

[SamAdams76]

I was actually impressed with the speed and efficiency in which the bridge was built. I remember a couple years ago, the first supports were just being put in place next to the existing one. During the construction, I often joked that the politicians must be really afraid that the old one was about to fall into the water, because I can't remember another major public works project being done so quickly. Turns out, the original Tappan Zee was in really bad shape and that there were real concerns that it could fail at any time.

The new one looks very impressive - I'll be going over it on Monday for the first time. I think the $4b pricetag is in line for a project of that size. How much do you think it should have cost?

[Dr. Bogus Pachysandra]

“If it’s yellow, let it mellow. If it’s brown, let it drown.”

[Attention Surplus Disorder]

Why, do you suppose it was such a scary Bridge? You both agreed. It was by far the longest bridge I had gone over when I was a kid and my dad was driving. The GWB was a much beefier affair with those heavy supports. Then I moved out to California and the San Mateo Bridge and the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge are considerably longer, but there was something about the Tappan Zee that seemed a little bit rickety even 40 years ago. Maybe because I was so young when I traveled over it.

[Darksheare]

I liked driving across the CrappanZee and being able to look down at the water below through a hole in the concrete.
That was an experience.

[x]

So New England is now an island?

Will we float out to sea?

Or capsize first from all the people here.

FWIW, the official name of the bridge is the Governor Malcolm Wilson–Tappan Zee Bridge, but in death as in life, Rocky's lieutenant governor and successor gets no respect.

[fieldmarshaldj]

That’s the question, what should it have really cost ? The Empire State is notoriously corrupt, and you know the costs were padded to go to lining the pockets of Jr. Coomo’s pals.

You’re also right that the old Tappan Zee was needing a replacement. I’ve been over it several times (though not since the ‘90s last) and it was “getting up there” even then.