I-87 Exit 4 – Colonie, NY

Project Stakeholders

• Owner: New York State Department of Transportation (Region 1)
• Contractors: L & T Construction (Lancaster Development, Inc. of Richmondville, NY and Tully Construction Company, Inc. of Flushing, Queens)

Project Overview: A Model for Rapid Bridge Replacement

The I-87 Exit 4 Bridge Replacement Project in Colonie, NY was a critical infrastructure upgrade designed to replace two aging highway bridges over Albany-Shaker Road—a corridor carrying over 100,000 vehicles daily on one of upstate New York’s busiest highways.

With traffic congestion and safety concerns growing, NYSDOT implemented an accelerated bridge construction (ABC) strategy to minimize disruption while modernizing the corridor. Precast concrete bridge components allowed for a rapid bridge replacement with minimal traffic impact.

Precast Concrete: The Key to Accelerated Construction

The success of this rapid bridge replacement hinged on the use of precast bridge components, which were manufactured off-site at our Easton, NY facility. This approach streamlined installation, reduced on-site labor, and ensured high-strength, durable materials ready for immediate placement.

Precast Elements Used for Rapid Installation:

• 84 precast bridge deck panels
• 626 linear feet of integral precast parapet
• 20 precast approach slabs
• 8 precast sleeper slabs

By fabricating components in a controlled environment, we ensured precision, quality, and durability, eliminating weather-related delays and optimizing the construction timeline.

Traffic Management & Execution of the Rapid Bridge Replacement

Given the project’s location near Albany International Airport, NYSDOT’s “Drivers First” initiative required innovative solutions to keep lanes open during construction. Precast concrete played a crucial role in traffic management, allowing for:

• A major 72-hour weekend traffic shift in June 2015, enabling crews to demolish the old bridge sections and install new precast elements efficiently.
• Continuous lane availability, with at least two lanes open in each direction—even during peak construction phases.
• Completion within a single construction season, reducing what would have been a two-year project using conventional methods to just eight months.

Successful Completion: A Benchmark for Future Projects

The I-87 Exit 4 bridge replacement was completed ahead of schedule in October 2015, on time and within budget ($22.3 million). The new overpass configuration allowed for the road to be widened underneath the bridges, easing a notorious choke point at the ramp intersections​

Local officials noted that traffic moves more smoothly through what had been a bottleneck, with fewer backups on the off-ramps​. Pedestrians and bicyclists also benefited from new sidewalks and a multi-use path added as part of the project, improving connectivity to nearby businesses and the airport.

This project demonstrated that rapid bridge replacement using precast concrete is not only feasible but highly effective in reducing traffic impact and improving overall infrastructure resilience.