NY Lawmakers Seek Answers From TZC Over Cuomo Bridge Safety

TAPPAN ZEE, NY — As the latest iteration of a five-year-old allegation about the safety of the Mario Cuomo Bridge continues unfolding, several New York State Senate committees issued a formal request Friday to Tappan Zee Constructors, LLC for information and documents.

The request stems from the lawmakers' investigation into a March article by the Albany Times Union alleging that the Mario Cuomo Bridge was dangerous and covered up by the contractors and the New York State Thruway Authority, an accusation both TZC and the NYSTA vehemently deny.

"To incite a lack of confidence in the traveling public is just reckless, irresponsible and unsound journalism. Public safety is our highest priority and shame on the Times Union for their inaccurate assertions and mischaracterizations," Project Director Jamey Barbas, P.E. said.

The media outlet described a whistleblower's allegations that the problem posed structural dangers but had been covered up, and called subsequent investigations into the whistleblower's allegations done by the New York Inspector General and the state's Attorney General "lackluster."

The controversy was picked up by freshman Congressman Mondaire Jones (Rockland, Westchester), who sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg urging the Department of Transportation to open an investigation.

Federal officials issued a statement in response saying the bridge was regularly and thoroughly inspected, and that the Federal Highway Administration was aware of the allegations and the subsequent testing. "FHWA has reviewed inspection reports and other information from NYSTA and has no safety concerns with these bridges."

Barbas and Thruway Authority Executive Director Matthew J. Driscoll welcomed the FHWA's review.

"We want to reiterate that the bridge is completely safe for the traveling public," they said in a statement. "As we have previously detailed, the Thruway Authority spent more than one million dollars, brought in world-renowned experts, and studied and tested hundreds of bolts when the issue first arose in 2016."

Still, calls came to investigate again, and Gov. Andrew Cuomo's political enemies recommended taking his father's name off the bridge.

The new bridge was named after the current governor's father, who was governor of New York from 1983 to 1994. Its name was immediately disliked by many. SEE: Petition Asking For Bridge Name Change Delivered To Albany. The old bridge, named the Governor Malcolm Wilson Tappan Zee Bridge, was completely dismantled by 2019.

When news broke in 2018 about the Attorney General's investigation into the whistleblower's accusations, Tappan Zee Constructors issued a statement saying they had "fully cooperated by providing documentation, hundreds of actual bolts for testing and access to our employees. To date, all bolt testing performed by multiple parties indicates there is not an issue with the bolts."

In March, Jennifer Givner, director of media relations and communications at the New York State Thruway Authority, sent a statement to Patch. "As expected in any infrastructure project of this size, this project required rigorous standards for all quality control and assurance processes in both its design and construction. In 2016, independent experts began testing and later concluded that both the bolts and the bridge were safe long before either span of the bridge opened to traffic. Public safety is our highest priority and the bridge is completely safe for the traveling public."

Given the controversy, several committees in the State Senate determined to do their own probe: Investigations and Government Operations; Contracts and Procurement; Corporations, Authorities, and Commissions; and Transportation.

State Sen. James Skoufis (Rockland, Orange) is head of Investigations and Government Operations. In a statement issued Monday, he said the Thruway Authority has been cooperative with the inquiry into the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge and had shared significant documentation over the past seven weeks.

Senator Elijah Reichlin-Melnick (Rockland-Ossining), chair of the contracts committee, also released a statement Monday.

"As we have promised our constituents, safety of residents and commuters is our number one priority," he said. "We must get to the bottom of this issue so that users of the new bridge can feel confident in the safety of the structure. I am thankful for the support from my colleagues in the Senate and from the NYS Thruway Authority as we investigate these serious allegations."

SEE ALSO:

• NY AG Probes 60 Bolts Discarded During Cuomo Bridge Construction
• Paper Questions Probe Of Bad MC Bridge Bolts, Officials Disagree
• Rep. Jones Calls For Federal Investigation Into Cuomo Bridge Bolts
• Cuomo Bridge Is Safe: Federal Highway Administration