NYACK, N.Y. (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – The New York State Thruway Authority sued the builders of the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge on Thursday, alleging parts of the bridge are not up to par, though the bridge remains safe to use.
The Thruway Authority filed the lawsuit against Tappan Zee Constructors in Supreme Court in Albany amid concerns over the quality of the anchor pipes, which is where the cables connect to the support structure.
According to the Thruway Authority, 61 of the 192 anchor pipes don’t make the grade and must be retrofitted, adding to the cost of maintaining the bridge.
The lawsuit accuses TZC—a consortium of four contracting companies—of refusing to redo the work and owing the Thruway Authority at least $6 million for the issue.
There was no immediate response from Tappan Zee Constructors, which itself sued the Thruway Authority in 2021 over payments it said it was owed.
The new bridge opened in 2017 to replace the Tappan Zee Bridge connecting Nyack and Tarrytown. It's supposed to last 100 years.
Rockland County Executive Ed Day said he spoke with the head of the Thruway Authority, Frank Hoare, who told him the bridge is safe to use and that it’s an issue of durability and maintenance.
“I will drive over the bridge,” Day said.
As for retrofitting the components that didn't pass muster—the process is underway.
“They have already put together a program of inspections, replacements, so they’re moving it along,” Day said.
“He feels strongly that everything will be fine,” Day said of Hoare. “But he wants to add an extra level of caution and an extra level of inspection to make sure that everything is fine.”
In a statement Thursday, Thruway Authority spokesperson Jennifer Givner said: “The New York State Thruway Authority (NYSTA) is committed to ensuring contractor compliance to guarantee the toll payers get what they paid for in the construction of the Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge, which independent experts have confirmed is safe.”
“NYSTA and Tappan Zee Constructors (TZC) have a dispute regarding material compliance of several stay cable anchorage components,” Givner’s statement continued. “NYSTA asserts that these components are not contractually compliant and require remediation. TZC has disagreed and refused to act in accordance with their contract.”
“To ensure contract compliance, NYSTA has filed a lawsuit to recover the costs of evaluation and remediation of these components,” Givner said. “Simultaneously, NYSTA has begun the process to retrofit these components, under the guidance of nation-leading experts in material science, engineering and design. NYSTA has also commissioned a full independent safety review of the GMMCB, which determined that the retrofit of the components is necessary to ensure their durability and full service life that toll payers paid for.”