Binghamton Street to Open After 14-Month I-81 Bridge Repair Job

State transportation department officials have given the green light for vehicular traffic to resume using Chenango Street on Binghamton's North Side.

A detour has been in place for more than 14 months as a contractor worked on a project designed to keep a new Interstate 81 bridge from sinking any further.

A crew from the state of Maine was heading to the site Tuesday afternoon to apply new striping to the road surface before it reopens. The street should be back in operation Wednesday.

Two-way traffic will be permitted under what's called the Chenango Arch until Monday. Then temporary signals are expected to be used on both sides of the bridge to allow single lane operation in alternating directions.

Sandblasting is planned for next week. Some additional work also may be performed before operations are halted for the season.

Construction crews are to return to Chenango Street in the spring to complete the repair project.

The bridge was constructed using precast concrete sections in 2013. Problems with the span were observed shortly after it was built.

The state Department of Transportation began closely monitoring the abnormal sinking of the bridge.

Officials initially expected the repair work would be completed in about three months. They said the first phase of the project cost about $3.5 million.

The original effort to address the problem was unsuccessful, so additional concrete pours were ordered. The DOT has not released a final cost estimate for the job.

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com or (607) 545-2250. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.