Gold Star Bridge Construction on I-95

Submitted by AggRavatedR t3_1130vft in Connecticut

Does anyone have any idea when this construction on the Toll Gate Bridge connecting New London to Groton over the Thames via I95 is supposed to be completed? This project started in 2017 and seems to be at a complete standstill, except rarely. I'll see one DOT pickup truck on the shoulder, causing a slow of traffic. It doesn't look like they are completing anything, however. What gives? I thought I read years ago that this project was supposed to have been completed by now, and I feel as though it's barely gotten off the ground.

4

Comments

You must log in or register to comment.

thesbaine t1_j8nar5j wrote

Know a guy. Work is estimated to begin sometime between Tomorrow and some time in the future.

5

lost_in_connecticut t1_j8nwukv wrote

Awesome. So, on about the same timeline as the work on I-84 in Waterbury that started in the mid 1990’s.

2

RededHaid t1_j8nd0ku wrote

  1. What do you mean by Toll Gate Bridge?
2

AggRavatedR OP t1_j8nr3hy wrote

Meant to say Gold Star. There's a Toll gate Road in Groton. It was a slip. That's my bad. That one's on me

1

Prestigious_Bobcat29 t1_j8nhola wrote

Oh my sweet summer child.

The project was stalled for a bit waiting for funding but has been underway and will continue to be for the next decade or so. Thus far has been superstructure work that hasn’t necessitated much disruption, but that will change in about 2 years iirc. The bridge turns 80 this year and is in need of major rehab. Of course, it still needs to be operable throughout the rehab as well, which is why it takes so long

2

sweaterandsomenikes t1_j8ntut7 wrote

I work on it. First phase is all structural steel repair, under the bridge. AKA the only evidence of work from above is the lane closure to reduce live load on repair nodes. Three year contract that started in spring 2022. 2nd and 3rd phases saw the engineer get fired so another design needs to come out. I expect at least a year delay from that. Hopefully phases 2 and 3 (they are combined) go out to bid for construction to begin in 2026.

3

mkt853 t1_j8nicxc wrote

Why don't they just make a new bridge if it's that old like they did with the Baldwin and Q?

1

Prestigious_Bobcat29 t1_j8nl0b3 wrote

I can’t speak for federal DOT, but I’m sure alternatives were studied and this was deemed the best solution. Could be sub base/coast guard related, could have just been prohibitively expensive. Could have been too difficult to work around all the rail infrastructure surrounding the bridge

1

Backpacker7385 t1_j8nqujz wrote

This is a big part of the answer. Maintaining the Thames River with a navigable channel for submarines is the number one priority, as the Groton Sub Base is the single most important sub base in the Navy’s arsenal. That factor throws a major wrench into building a new bridge.

3

Popular_Bid_3343 t1_j8ojejx wrote

Out of curiosity, is the Groton Sub Base really the most important base? Why?

1

Backpacker7385 t1_j8ojuxe wrote

Location. It doesn’t make sense looking at a flat map, but if you look at a globe and realize that subs can go under the polar ice cap it becomes much more clear. It’s faster to get a submarine to coastal Russian waters from Groton than from San Diego.

1

paintball6818 t1_j8nqool wrote

The Baldwin bridge didn’t have adequate capacity so it was decided to build new. Q bridge also didn’t have adequate capacity and had giant holes in the footings so rehab wasn’t an option. Goldstar bridge has the capacity so they chose the cheaper option to rehab it.

1

WengFu t1_j8nkxqg wrote

Work has been underway on the GSB for as long as I can remember and will likely be still underway long after we have all shuffled off this mortal coil.

1

AggRavatedR OP t1_j8nrflu wrote

I just remember the g9verner saying something about a complete rehab. 5 years on the North section, 5 years on the South section. As someone who traverses the bridge daily, it's been 6 years now with very little progress made. I was just curious. Round and round the government goes...lol

1