Bridge Bearing Replacement Project Gold Star Memorial Bridge Northbound Interstate 95 NB over the T

CONNECTICUT DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

NEWS RELEASE

2800 BERLIN TURNPIKE P.O. BOX 317546

NEWINGTON CONNECTICUT, 06131-7546

FOR RELEASE: August 20, 2014

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION:

OFFICE OF COMMUNICATIONS

TELEPHONE: (860) 594-3062

FAX: (860) 594-3065

WEB SITE: www.ct.gov/dot

Bridge Bearing Replacement Project – Gold Star Memorial Bridge Northbound (Interstate 95 NB over the Thames River in the Towns of Groton and new London)

The Connecticut Department of Transportation is announcing that construction work involving daytime lane closures will begin on August 26, 2014, on the northbound Gold Star Memorial Bridge in New London and Groton.

The project consists of bearing replacements at two piers of the structure. The bearing replacement work will be staged to minimize lane closures, which will consist of a shoulder and two through lanes on I-95 N.B.

LANE CLOSURE INFO-

Monday through Friday from 8:00 A.M. to 4:00 P.M., the lane closures will start on August 26^th and will run intermittently through November 30, 2014.

The contract was awarded on March 6, 2014, to Cianbro Corporation of Bloomfield, Connecticut at an estimated cost of $4,000,000.00 and is scheduled to be completed in December 2014.

What are "bridge bearings?" Bridge bearings come in different varieties, but typically connect bridge piers (in the case of the Gold Star, the concrete bridge piers) to the superstructure and deck (driving surface that vehicles travel on) of the bridge. The purpose of bridge bearings is to allow for the normal movement of the structure - for example, as a result of thermal expansion and contraction.