The loud noises and bumpy rides that motorists have experienced in recent weeks on Jericho Turnpike in New Hyde Park from the Queens County line to Herricks Road are expected to come to an end this week with the completion of resurfacing work by the state Department of Transportation.
“The state will complete resurfacing Jericho by Friday of this week,” Village of New Hyde Park Trustee Donald Barbieri said Monday.
Barbieri said the village board is awaiting DOT approval of a bid on work to finish the Operation Mainstreet business district upgrade, and complete construction on the roadway.
Barbieri said the DOT’s review is needed before the village can hire the contracting firm that will do the work.
The final phase of Operation Mainstreet plans include bulb-outs – rounded corners that would extend slightly into the roadway – to be added at locations yet to be determined, along with installation of medians with plantings. The bulb-outs are intended to slow down cars turning off Jericho Turnpike.
Benches will also be installed on sidewalks, which would be paved with the same rustic red brickwork already in place in some sections of the road near the intersection of Jericho Turnpike and Lakeville Road.
“They reviewed the low bidder and there’s some paperwork that needs to be done with that. As usual it takes a little longer than we want it to,” Barbieri said.
Barbieri has said the board conducted “due diligence” on the low bidder, Bohemia-based J. Anthony Enterprises, which submitted a bid of $1.46 million to do the final stage of upgrades. Bethpage-based New York Paving submitted a bid of $1.52 million. The two bids were received by the village board last month.
“We have opened the bids. We have done an analysis of the bids,” he said.
Barbieri said he anticipated the DOT would complete its review of the J. Anthony Enterprises bid within the next week to 10 days.
Flushing-based Tully Construction, the state contractor for the resurfacing, has been working on the resurfacing of Jericho in New Hyde Park over the past month during nighttime hours.
A second contractor will be installing new countdown traffic lights to improve safety for pedestrians crossing Jericho, according to Barbieri. He said pipes for the new traffic lights have already been erected.
“All of the underground stuff has been done,” he said.
The project is being funded through a federal transportation appropriation of $1.425 million secured by U.S. Rep. Carolyn McCarthy under the community block grant program.
“We’re in the home stretch,” Barbieri said.
Tully Construction has finished resurfacing Jericho between Herricks Road and Glen Cove Road in the first phase of a $21.1 million DOT project.
