More Work Needed Under I-81’s Once-Sinking Bridge in Binghamton

Construction crews are busy again under a troubled Interstate 81 bridge on Binghamton's North Side.

Workers have started removing a temporary material that was used to fill the space between the once-sinking bridge and newly-installed sidewalks along Chenango Street.

The concrete-like material that was used now is being replaced with a more-permanent material.

Scott Cook, a spokesperson for the New York State Department of Transportation, said the new round of work began last week.

Traffic is being maintained on both Chenango Street and on I-81 above the work zone. There will be occasional lane shifts along Chenango Street while the project is underway. No street closures are anticipated at this time.

Cook said the staging area that was used by contractors along Moffatt Avenue on the south side of the highway will be cleaned up. Seeding and mulching is planned for that area. The work is expected to be completed by the middle of next week.

Chenango Street between Bevier and Frederick streets had been closed for nearly 15 months while work was done to prevent further sinking of the Interstate 81 bridge.

Excessive settling and sinking of the bridge was discovered shortly after it was constructed in 2013. Precast concrete arches were used to build the bridge.

According to the DOT, the initial phase of the repair project cost about $3.5 million. The original plan to stabilize the bridge didn't work, so the job wound up be much more expensive and time-consuming than expected.

The agency has not released a final cost for the effort to address the bridge's problems.

WATCH: What should be the final installment of a long-running project to deal with the sinking Interstate 81 bridge over Chenango Street.

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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.