The Mill Basin Bridge is adjacent to the Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge and the Gateway National Recreation Area. It is a movable draw bridge on the Belt Parkway with a clearance over mean high water of 35 feet. The new structure will not be a draw bridge, but a fixed structure with a 60 foot clearance over mean high water. The new construction will result in increased sight distances, wider lanes, and the inclusion of safety shoulders in both directions. A new fender system will be installed to protect the bridge substructure from marine traffic.
The Mill Basin Inlet Bridge (pictured above)will be built “off line”, meaning that new structures will be built adjacent to the existing bridges. Traffic will remain on the existing bridges until the new structures are complete. According to DOT, minimal impacts will occur when the approach roadways are configured to move traffic to the new bridges. Construction is scheduled to begin in 2010.
Other bridges included in the reconstruction project include the Fresh Creek, Rockaway Parkway, Bay Ridge and Paerdegat Basin bridges.
When construction starts, Expect the following schedule for weekday lane closures: all lanes will be open from 5 AM to 10 AM and from 2 PM to 10 PM. One lane will be closed from 10 AM to 2 PM, and from 10 AM to 5 AM, and two lanes will be closed from 1 AM to 5 AM. For weekends, expect one lane closed from 11 PM to 6 AM on Fri-Sat., and two lanes closed from 1 AM to 5 AM Saturday.
