Before the Tappan Zee Bridge, Rockland County was a rural NYC suburb. How the bridge transformed life in the county is the subject of a new 30 minute film and a book premiering on Tues 2/16 in Suffern.

“The Tappan Zee Bridge: Transforming Rockland County,” a 30 minute educational documentary, will be shown on Feb 16 at 12:30p at the Lafayette Theatre, Suffern, NY. Following the film, Roger Panetta’s new book, “The Tappan Zee Bridge and the Forging of the Rockland Suburb” will be introduced with a brief Q&A session with panelists who collaborated on the Tappan Zee Legacy Project.

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by Dave Zornow

Nyack, Jan 3 — Here’s the second installment in our top Nyack stories of 2009 series. Yesterday we counted down ten from 20. Here’s the rest of the best based on Google Analytics reports of NyackNewsAndViews site traffic. Continue reading →

by Dave Zornow

Nyack, Jan 2 — Elections, fireworks, parking, boating, sailing, ROMPing and drinking were some of the big stories of last year. Here’s our countdown of Nyack’s Top 20 news and views of 2009.

This list is based on Google Analytics reports of NyackNewsAndViews site traffic., NyackNewsAndViews averages about 40,000 pageviews with about half of all adults 25+ reading NyackNewsAndViews on a regular basis (hover for details).

Although these are the “top stories” by popular demand, we all know the best performer isn’t always the winner on American Idol. Feel free to click the comment link and add your own suggestions to the list. Or topics you think deserve more attention in 2010.

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AAA New York has published a Bridges To Watch list based on structural examinations from traffic safety experts. The Tappan Zee edges out the Kosciuszko and the Goethals bridge as one of “three worst bridges” in the NY Metro area.

“[The] Tappan Zee tops the list due to its very poor physical condition and lack of shoulders. Made of substandard steel during the Korean War. Approaches built on piles made of wood that are constantly eroding,” says AAA Car and Travel magazine.

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by Dave Zornow

Nyack, Nov 29 — The polarizing national health care debate would seem to have little to do with the regional discussion about a future Tappan Zee Bridge replacement. But there are two similarities: both initiatives are being justified by their long term cost savings and most reasonable people agree that what we have now doesn’t work very well.

Over the past month, transportation officials have been meeting with local leaders and the public to present plans for a $16 billion Tappan Zee Bridge replacement just to the north of the current TZB. If funds can be found, construction of the five year project will start in 2013.

For planners, there are alot of choices still to be made. Project managers have their work cut out trying to find the funds to finance this new project. And commuters have a new vocabulary to learn. Continue reading →

There’s a public discussion on Thursday at Nyack High School cafeteria to present plans for a replacement Tappan Zee Bridge. Before that bridge meeting, see Before the Bridge at the Nyack Library on Tuesday 11/17. It’s a film about life in the riverfront villages before December 1955.

“When I was nine my mother took me to the opening ceremony for the bridge. I had no idea then how significant that event would be and the coming changes it meant for our lives,” says producer Steve Bretschneider. “When the idea of a new bridge was discussed, I decided to document the memories of those who grew up here before the construction of the Tappan Zee Bridge.”

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The new Tappan Zee Bridge will be coming to the Nyack on November 18.

Nyack High School (11/18) is one of five locations where the Tappan Zee Bridge/I-287 Corridor Project will hold community meetings along the 30 mile commuting corridor between Hillburn and Port Chester.  Each meeting will focus on a specific geographic region of the corridor.

Regional transportation officials are currently working on the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) and are evaluating various transit and bridge options to be analyzed in the DEIS.

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by Cliff Weathers

Far upstate, the Crown Point bridge, which crosses Lake Champlain between Crown Point, New York and Chimney Point, Vermont has been shut down because of massive structural problems and it will likely not open until significant repairs are done to shore it up. And nobody knows when that’s going to be—it could take years. Governor Paterson has declared a state of emergency in Essex County as has been called for Addison County, Vermont. This has stranded thousands of commuters, who can’t get to their jobs or their businesses. It’s a regional economic disaster created by many years of inattentiveness to our infrastructure.

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Sept 29: Regional transportation officials and community leaders met in a summit at Rockland Community College on to discuss funding for the replacement Tappan Zee Bridge. In addition to more car and truck capacity, the proposed $16B project includes a rail line from Suffern to Grand Central and a regional BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) link connecting Port Jefferson and Suffern.

Philip Ferguson, head of the project’s finance team, had disappointing news for project advocates who are ready to build today.  “For those of you who may have come here today thinking we would start telling you how we’re going to pay for all of this, we’re not even close to that point in the process.”

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Bikers and motorists will be doing their part for MS on Sunday 10/18 between 6a and 12n. Hundreds of cyclists will participate directly by riding in the Great TZ Bike Tour for MS which crosses the Tappan Zee and Bear Mountain Bridges. Drivers participation will be more indirect, slowing and showing patience during the Sunday morning cycling fundraiser for Multiple Sclerosis.

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