CHARLESTON — A $100,000 street will be built underneath the Outerbridge Crossing in Charleston to make it easier for drivers to avoid making an illegal turn.
The road will connect North Bridge and South Bridge streets and let motorists avoid a traffic light and dangerous turn at Arthur Kill Road to get onto South Bridge Street, Assemblyman Joe Borelli announced.
“During the '80s and '90s this spot was used as an illegal cut-through by people looking to access Tottenville, and with a little engineering we can bring it back with a safer configuration,” Borelli said.
“We see the space under bridges being utilized for different purposes all around the city and I’m glad the Port Authority has an interest in maximizing our space here.”
Borelli said the new road will also help drivers avoid making an illegal turn before the intersection of South Bridge Street and Arthur Kill Road.
The planned site for the new street is currently used for storage by the Port Authority. The $100,000, which has been earmarked from capital funding, will go towards the first phase of the project which will involve removing and replacing barriers, walls, fencing and equipment at the site, Borelli said.
The funding will also be used to do subsurface work for the future roadbed, Borelli said.
The second phase of the project — which includes paving the road and adding a new turning lane — will be completed by the Department of Transportation.
A spokesman for the Port Authority said the agency was reviewing the proposal and didn't have a timeframe for when the first phase would be done yet.
The DOT also did not have a timetable for when the road would open.
"NYC DOT, working with community leaders and the Port Authority, is helping to develop short-term and long-term solutions to the potentially dangerous problem of illegal turns below the Outerbridge Crossing," a spokesman for the DOT said.
"We will continue to work with everyone as we move forward in the process."
Borelli added with the population increase in the South Shore of the borough and new businesses popping up, this project will help ease traffic in busy areas.
“This, in combination with the existing intersection widening at Page Avenue and Amboy Road and the widening of Richmond Valley Road that have been championed by Borough President Oddo and former Councilman Ignizio, will ease the traffic flow in and around the commercial corridors of Tottenville and Charleston," Borelli said.
