Hello Headaches, Arrigoni Bridge Work Begins Wednesday

From the Middletown Police Department




Arrigoni Bridge Construction project to start next week.


Construction Preparation to Begin Tuesday May 31, 2011 on the Arrigoni Bridge Carrying Route 66 Over the Connecticut River in The Towns of Middletown and Portland

The work involves preparatory work prior to the first stage of construction. This includes putting up directional signs for traffic and setting up the staging material. No temporary barriers will be installed at this time. Daily lane closures will be limited to off peak hours between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m.

The Middletown Police Department is reminding motorist not to block the intersections. Motorists should not enter the intersection unless they can drive completely through the intersection and not obstruct other vehicles or pedestrians.

The Middletown Fire Department is also reminding motorists not to block the driveway to the Fire Department on Main St.

The Town of Portland has an Emergency Response Plan in effect for the expect bridge closures.



The project involves the rehabilitation of Bridge No. 00524 (Arrigoni Bridge) carrying Route 66 over Route 9, Connecticut River, P&W Railroad, and local roads. The rehabilitation includes replacement of the concrete filled steel grid deck and sidewalks on the main spans. All work will be completed from the bridge and from a temporary work platform suspended below the bridge. Other work includes replacement of elastomeric bearings, pedestal repairs on the Portland side, new bituminous overlay on the main spans, and new expansion joints.

The bridge work will be completed in three stages with the first stage scheduled to begin in the latter part of June and the last stage to be completed by November 2012. During stage construction, there will be one lane of traffic available in each direction. Pedestrian and bicycle access will be maintained on either side of the bridge dependent on what stage of construction the project is in.

A portable smart work zone system will be installed to detect the presence and speed of vehicles and send that information to message boards to provide information on current traffic conditions to motorists. More information on the system and locations of devices is available at the project website. Once the system is on line a web link will be included on the website for public access.

A separate web page for the Arrigoni Bridge Project that includes information on the project is now available at the Department’s website www.ct.gov/dot/Arrigoni . Any questions or comments related to the Arrigoni Bridge should be sent to DOT.Arrigoni@ct.gov