Transparency Is Key for Tappan Zee, But There's Still No Financial Plan

“It’s about communication,” said New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s secretary, Larry Schwartz, of the Tappan Zee Bridge replacement process.

With a newly launched website, ongoing public meetings and a new special advisor to “keep the flow of information going,” communication is certainly on the top of Cuomo’s agenda.

Despite the increased flow of information, questions still remain about how the mega-project, estimated to cost $5 billion, will be funded.

“We have to make sure that the toll structure, which is going to have to pay for the cost of the bridge, is feasible and affordable and we hope to provide more information regarding that in the near future,” Schwartz said Wednesday during a webcast hosted by LoHud.com’s editorial board.

Schwartz, whom Cuomo tapped as point man for the project, said they would wait to receive bids from design-build teams and to see if they receive a federal loan.

“Whatever we get will be determinative,” Schwartz said.

The design-build bids are due on Friday. Under the process, the state develops basic requirements for the new bridge, and engineering and construction firms compete for a contract to design and build the bridge, which would replace the existing span crossing the Hudson River north of New York City. Officials have said this process will eliminate added cost and shift financial risks to the private sector.

The bridge plans currently include eight traffic lanes, dedicated lanes and shoulders for emergency vehicles, a dedicated bus lane and a walkway or bikeway.

To help fund costs for the bridge, the New York State Thruway Authority had previously requested a loan of $2 billion under the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act program.

Under the new transportation bill, funding for the program has increased and the authority could request almost half the cost of the project. Recipients of the loans have not yet been announced.

Schwartz said there would be public presentations for plans before any decision is made, but he did not give a definite timeline for when this might be.

In the meantime, new special advisor Brian Conybeare said that anyone with questions can call the hotline at 1-855-TZBRIDGE or contact him.

Conybeare, previously an anchor for Hudson Valley’s News 12 Evening Edition, was appointed by Cuomo on Monday to serve as the liaison between the governor and Hudson Valley residents. “I’m not an expert, I’m not an engineer, but I can help the communication process,” he said on his first day on the job Wednesday.

Schwartz and Conybeare were also joined in the webcast by Thomas Madison, the Thruway Authority’s executive director, and Mark Roche, an engineer with ARUP, one of the consulting firms on the project.