The state recently released its report outlining recommendations for short-term fixes to the New Haven Line”™s Walk Railroad Bridge in Norwalk.
The 118-year-old bridge recently malfunctioned twice within a two-week period, causing rippling delays.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, in unveiling the short-term fix report, said the state Bond Commission is expected to approve $3 million at its meeting Friday to fund the improvements recommended in the report. State Department of Transportation Commissioner James P. Redeker joined the governor in Hartford to make the announcement.
“The New Haven Line is the busiest commuter rail line in America and one malfunctioning bridge can disrupt the entire Northeast Corridor,” Malloy said. “Because our customers ”“ and our economy ”“ rely on this system every day, we are implementing these fixes to increase reliability in the near term until the full replacement of the Walk Bridge can begin.”
A short-term fix team for the bridge was assembled after a June 9 emergency meeting hosted by Malloy in Hartford. It consisted of state engineers and bridge inspectors, Metro-North engineers, and consultant bridge inspectors and engineers.
The state bond funding, if approved, will pay for work on the devices that lift the rails and reseat them, plus other improvements targeting the operation of the bridge.
In April, Malloy announced the state had applied for $360 million in Federal Transit Administration funding to replace the Walk Bridge. The state expects to receive an answer to that request by this fall.
