The two westbound lanes of Sunrise Highway over the Shinnecock Canal Bridge reopened in time for evening rush hour Tuesday, according to a statement released by Stephen Canzoneri, a spokesman for the New York State Department of Transportation, just after 4:30 p.m.
“The New York State Department of Transportation has completed structural repairs to the Shinnecock Canal Bridge and has reopened both westbound lanes of Sunrise Highway in time for this evening’s rush hour,” it read. “Finishing work will continue at the site and will require the closure of the right westbound lane on Wednesday, Nov. 5, between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. The right shoulder also remains closed at this time. Additional lane closures along Sunrise Highway and also Canal Road underneath the bridge may also be necessary in the coming days.”
The lanes had been closed since Friday morning, after heavy rainfall caused significant erosion along the highway in the area of the Shinnecock Canal. Southampton Town Supervisor Maria Moore declared a state of emergency, which went into effect at 11:30 a.m. Friday, and directed all town departments, including Police, Highway, and Public Safety, to “take whatever steps necessary to protect life, property, and public infrastructure, and to perform other emergency assistance as deemed necessary.”
Southampton Town police issued a news release that day announcing that the State D.O.T. was “currently on scene investigating and planning for the emergency repair/remediation of the area.” Ryan Murphy, the head of Southampton’s emergency management division, said on Saturday that the D.O.T. had indicated that it was “hopeful” the repairs could be accomplished “in about a week.”
The timeline for the reopening remained unclear up until the announcement from the D.O.T. Earlier today, Mr. Murphy said by phone that he was “literally just trying to dial” the state for an update on whether it would be opening a second lane today, and Lt. Carl Schottenhamel of the Southampton Town police wrote in an email this afternoon that the department was also waiting for an update from the D.O.T., which had previously expressed a hope to be able to open both lanes of the highway “by end of day tomorrow.”
The statement from the Department of Transportation ended with an encouragement for motorists to “check 511NY for the latest traffic information in the area.”
