Route 28 project may impact travel and wetlands
By Jak Krouse
Expect a delay traveling from Raquette Lake to Blue Mountain Lake and beyond through the end of 2025.
The state’s Department of Transportation is replacing a bridge over the South Inlet coming out of the hamlet of Raquette Lake. The bridge is part of Route 28, one of the main roads for tourists entering the park from the west.
To avoid a 90-mile detour, traffic will be reduced to a single lane controlled by alternating traffic lights until December of 2025, said Department of Transportation public information officer Heather Tehan.
The construction will slow traffic, but it was the only way to avoid closing the main thoroughfare completely, said Nick Stento, engineer in charge.
The old bridge was dangerously narrow, said Stento. As part of the redesign the new bridge will be 12 feet wider and feature a separate but adjacent bridge containing a multi-use path for pedestrians, cyclists and motorists.
The Department of Transportation received permits from the Adirondack Park Agency, Department of Environmental Conservation and US Army Corp of Engineers to destroy .225 acres of wetland surrounding the bridge to accommodate the new design. To account for the lost wetlands a new wetland 2.5 times larger is being put in alongside Lake Durant, Stento said.
Peter Bauer, executive director of Protect the Adirondacks, acknowledged the narrowness of the bridge and the possible need for an upgrade. He said he has concerns about the environmental impacts and describes the plan as coming with “a heavy touch.”
“They’ve destroyed wetlands,” he said. “There is an attempt to create a new wetland complex, but nobody even knows if it will be a successful wetland.”
Bauer also said the bridge construction has the potential to impact snapping turtles who nest nearby.
Tehan emphasized the Department of Transportation’s commitment to being a good environmental steward. Its plan was developed “to minimize and mitigate impacts to the neighboring wetlands,” Tehan said. “DOT has obtained all necessary state and federal permits and will adhere to all applicable state and federal regulations as we undertake the project.”
The canoe launch alongside the bridge will remain open for most of the construction, while the parking lot for the canoe launch may move throughout the process, Tehan said.
The Department of Transportation expects the bridge, which was first constructed in 1929, to be fully replaced in June of 2026. The project was contracted to Tioga Construction Co. for $16.2 million.
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A well written article.
For less than a few hundred dollars a couple of Narrow Bridge Ahead signs would have been sufficient.
Maybe boat launch or pedestrian signs would also be in order.
I see them used successfully throughout coastal Maine.
I have parked and launched boats there since the mid sixties without a problem.
Sorry such a beautiful spot is going to be destroyed, not to mention the huge amount of money involved.
Who decides what’s to narrow?
What’s the next target.
The park has many similar bridges.
I see the