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vermontgolfer
Citizen
Username: Vermontgolfer
Post Number: 134
Registered: 12-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, October 23, 2003 - 1:53 pm: |     |
Happened by the bridge disaster today and noticed that the temporary bridge has been put in place and they have begun the grading process from the original road to the bridge. Looks like their November date is looking pretty good, though obviously as we know, anything can happen. |
NCJanow
Citizen
Username: Librarylady
Post Number: 1047
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Tuesday, October 28, 2003 - 11:08 am: | |
From The Star-Ledger
Temporary bridge on Vauxhall Road to open this week
Tuesday, October 28, 2003
BY JASON JETT
Star-Ledger Staff
A temporary span on Vauxhall Road in Union Township is expected to open by Friday, bringing relief to motorists, pedestrians and area businesses in both Union and Essex counties.
Millburn Mall business managers say they have suffered losses since the bridge-replacement project closed a three-block stretch of Vauxhall Road in May.
The joint Essex-Union bridge and flood-wall project has been plagued by delays since it began in early 2000, months after the border neighborhoods were flooded with waters spawned by Hurricane Floyd.
Traffic bottlenecked between Vauxhall Road and Valley Street for much of the ensuing two years as a single-lane remained open during a bridge reconstruction on Millburn Avenue in Millburn.
To avoid such lengthy delays, Union County opted to close a section of Vauxhall Road and rebuild a deteriorating bridge during the summer months. The work began in late spring and was to conclude by Sept. 21.
However, complications arose when engineers determined the aging Rahway River branch span required a replacement bridge. Then, in July, a dispute with the contractor brought the project to a halt.
"Whenever the county gets involved in something, well, they say one week, and it takes a month," said Alex Appiah, manager of Drug Fair, an anchor in the shopping center.
"We all have our fingers crossed, hoping they have the bridge up and open well before the holiday season," the store manager said of merchants.
Appiah said his store is more than $315,000 behind in receipts from a year ago, largely because shoppers traveling from Millburn have to negotiate a one-mile detour.
He added neither his store nor any of the other 14 retail shops and three offices in the 40-year-old shopping complex has received financial assistance or compensation for losses caused by the stalled bridge project.
"There is no mechanism for us to apply for help," said Appiah.
Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo Jr. declined to comment on any monetary aid to affected businesses.
"The only way to resolve the problem is to have the temporary bridge open as quickly as possible," he said. "It's going to help things along for the holiday season. "
The Essex official stressed, "This is a Union County contract."
He said his office pushed Union officials at an emergency meeting to put up a temporary bridge, adding Essex has personnel assisting at the site.
"Millburn residents are very, very upset with traffic from this project, and the fact they can't get back and forth," he said. "We've had a lot of traffic complaints on this side. People in Millburn will be happy when this opens."
DiVincenzo said Essex officials expect the temporary bridge to open tomorrow, adding that only roadway approaches remain to be completed.
However, Frank Dann, Union County director of engineering and public works, said, "At the end of the day on the 31st it will open."
He added a week later the county will begin negotiations with the surety company of the contractor on the stalled permanent bridge project.
"It is the responsibility of the bonding company to get this job done, period," said Dann.
"How they do that is up to them," added the county official. "They can continue to use Santos Brothers, they may use two contractors for different phases. It's entirely up to them."
Santos Brothers Construction of Whitehouse was low bidder for the $4.1 million project to rebuild the 75-year-old bridge.
The company was removed from the project in mid-September by the county, and is no longer operational. A spokeswoman said owners are preparing a response to the default claim made by the county.
"They are going to say we didn't do this, and we will say they didn't do that," said Dann. "We're very confident in deeming our contractor in default. Now, his insurance company has to come in and iron this all out."
NCJ aka LibraryLady
On a coffee break..or something like it. |
Ukealalio
Citizen
Username: Ukealalio
Post Number: 113
Registered: 6-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 - 9:16 am: | |
Yippeee-Now I can get to Drug Fair faster and buy me some o those Little Debbie Cakes !!!. |
buzzsaw
Citizen
Username: Buzzsaw
Post Number: 1099
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 29, 2003 - 9:50 am: | |
Wow-wee. There is a lot of passing the buck there. You can always county on NJ county government to step up and get stuff done.
March 7th. Season 5!
There is. |
bak
Citizen
Username: Bak
Post Number: 381
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, October 30, 2003 - 8:44 pm: | |
Rode over it today coming from 78--what a relief! |
Nohero
Citizen
Username: Nohero
Post Number: 2335
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, October 30, 2003 - 8:51 pm: | |
You beat me to it, Bak. Used it tonight, stopped at a couple of the stores there also. The merchants seem a lot happier now. |
marken
Citizen
Username: Marken
Post Number: 58
Registered: 4-2003
| | Posted on Friday, October 31, 2003 - 8:54 am: | |
Who graded the approach to this brige? Evel Knievel?
Well, if you want some fun (and happen to be driving a rental car or if your own car is on the way to the scrap heap) ..... when there isn't too much traffic, try approaching the bridge at about 40-50 mph. It's a good way to test (blow) out your shocks and struts.
Just be sure to turn around and pick up whatever parts happen to fall off of your own car. Not everyone stunts in surburbia.
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duncanrogers
Citizen
Username: Duncanrogers
Post Number: 953
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Friday, October 31, 2003 - 9:52 am: | |
MARKEN IM STILL LAUGHING
www.freshwater-films.com |
NRL
Citizen
Username: Nrl
Post Number: 282
Registered: 8-2003
| | Posted on Saturday, November 1, 2003 - 11:43 pm: | |
I purposely hit the gas pedal harder going over it today. It was fun. Why did they make it such an incline/decline? Can you imagine trying to get up/down when its snow or ice. How would they plow that anyway? |
lseltzer
Citizen
Username: Lseltzer
Post Number: 1859
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Sunday, November 2, 2003 - 7:01 am: | |
Perhaps the elevation allows them to continue to work on the roadbed and riverbed below. |
bobk
Supporter
Username: Bobk
Post Number: 3730
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Sunday, November 2, 2003 - 8:00 am: | |
I made my first trip over the rollercoaster yesterday and it is nice to have easy access to Millburn Mall and Home Depot back. However, I had to stop at the light at the corner of Vaux Hall and Millburn Avenue and because of the blind hump in the bridge I was more than a little concerned I was going to get rearended. Any bets on when the first accident is going to happen. |
Tom Reingold the prissy-pants
Citizen
Username: Noglider
Post Number: 887
Registered: 1-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, November 2, 2003 - 1:27 pm: | |
Watch for tailgaters constantly. That way, you can slow down any time you need to. Sometimes I pull off the road for them. If I can't, I drive erratically, to scare them.
Tom Reingold
There is nothing
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Ignatius J
Citizen
Username: Ignatius_j
Post Number: 121
Registered: 8-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, November 2, 2003 - 7:54 pm: | |
Hey!!! I just used the bridge today. Did you know there were stores over there??? Awesome!!! |
AZ
Citizen
Username: Azaltsman
Post Number: 214
Registered: 1-2003
| | Posted on Thursday, November 6, 2003 - 2:01 am: | |
Ok, I think it now takes longer to get to RT78 via the bridge then to go around Valley and then to Vauxhall. Is it just me? That Valley/Vauxhall light after the bridge takes too long. |
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