CITING CONCERN FOR PUBLIC SAFETY, MOUNT VERNON TEMPORARILY CLOSES FULTON AVENUE AND EAST THIRD STREET BRIDGE/OVERPASS
For Immediate Release: January 11, 2023
Moving quickly on the New York State Department of Transportation’s cited concerns for the structural integrity of the Fulton Avenue and East Third Street Overpasses, Mayor Shawyn Patterson-Howard has ordered the immediate closure and rerouting of traffic on the city’s southeast side.
“We are acting to protect public safety,” said Mayor Patterson-Howard. “We know this is a heavily trafficked route for private and commercial vehicles and the planned detours will cause
some inconvenience, but based on the state’s structural reports, we cannot take the risk of road failure under the continued passage of overweight vehicles. Despite decades of temporary fixes, the City’s historic underinvestment in its infrastructure has manifested in yet another condition imminently dangerous to the safety and welfare of our residents and visitors. As the Mayor of these legacy problems, I cannot consciously ignore these dangers as they continue to emerge much to our collective exasperation.”
Commissioner Damani Bush added, “Within the next 24 hours, we will mobilize our resources to close all access to vehicular traffic as it is an immediate concern to the health and safety of our residents. There is no easy solution to replacing century-old underground supports on the remnants of a 1912
structure. Still, we are working closely with the NYS Department of Transportation to complete the repairs necessary to deactivate the associated red flag conditions and are researching all available channels for funding to finance the repairs. Moving forward, the preservation of these repairs and additional long-term solutions will be included in the City’s capital and infrastructure plans to ensure safe vehicle passage for decades to come.”
The City will be posting the details of the maintenance and protection, detoured traffic patterns and bus routes on its website and social media to minimize driver and rider inconvenience and traffic congestion and delays.
The City is also working with Westchester County, the Beeline Bus System, and the countywide emergency response divisions to ensure access to public safety services.
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