The Tappan Zee Bridge (English pronunciation: /ˌtæpən ˈziː/ ), officially named Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge after the former New York governor, is a twin cable-stayed bridge spanning the Tappan Zee section of the Hudson River between Tarrytown and Nyack in the U.S. state of New York. It was built to replace the original Tappan Zee Bridge, which opened in 1955 and was located just to the south. The bridge's north span carries the northbound and westbound automobile traffic of the New York State Thruway, Interstate 87 (I-87) and I-287; it also carries a shared use path for bicycles and pedestrians. The south span carries southbound and eastbound automobile traffic.
Although not as old as other bridges such as the George Washington, the original Tappan Zee was built in the midst of a material shortage during the Korean War and was thus only designed to last for approximately half a century. The process to replace the bridge kicked off in 2012, with construction on the new spans beginning by contractor Tappan Zee Constructors in 2013. The Left Coast Lifter, one of the largest cranes in the world, was instrumental in the bridge's construction. The north span officially opened to westbound traffic on August 26, 2017, and eastbound traffic temporarily began using the north span on October 6, 2017. Contractors then began demolishing the old bridge. An opening ceremony for the south span was held on September 7, 2018, and traffic started using the new span three days later.
___Interstate_287_q.jpg)