This iconic 3.5 mile black steel Pratt truss bridge or elevated “Skyway”, connects Newark, NJ to Jersey City, NJ crossing both the Hackensack and Passaic rivers as they flow into New York harbor. Designed by Sigvald Johannesson in the late 1920’s, for the NJDOT , the “Skyway” opened in 1932.
By 2012, the structure was in need of renovation and the bridge deck (roadway) was in desperate need of repair. The “Skyway” is an important transportation artery to and from New York City. It delivers an average of 74,000 cars per day from Newark, NJ and the surrounding area, directly into the Holland Tunnel for a trip under the Hudson River into New York City or into a revitalized downtown Jersey City.
The bridge deck rehabilitation started in July 2013, with new precast deck panels using high strength lightweight Solite concrete. These panels not only reduced the dead-weight load on the structure, providing for an extended durability of the deck, they also allowed for replacement at night which mitigated traffic disruptions and improved worker’s safety during construction. Panels were cast, transported to the site, lifted onto the bridge, and placed laterally completing two lanes of travel. Closure pours between slabs were made using Ultra High Strength Concrete (UHSC). An asphalt wearing surface was placed over the slabs to complete the travel lanes. Precast barriers (balustrades) were installed. Precast concrete was supplied by Jersey Precast and the General Contractor is CCA Civil Inc. for NJ DOT at a cost of $336 Million for this phase. The estimated cost for the entire Skyway repair is $1.2 Billion.