Blisters and bumps crowd cyclists on the Mario Cuomo Bridge bike path
Cyclists report that sections of the shared path over the Mario Cuomo Bridge are pockmarked with blisters and cracks.
The bike and pedestrian path on the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge has been plagued by hundreds of asphalt blisters since it opened four years ago, a mysterious defect that gives cyclists a bumpy ride.
The bubbles, some a quarter inch high, have burst from the blue surface of the trail and often appear in clusters.
“You really have to hold the handlebars,” said Will Silver, who used the trail regularly when he lived in Nyack and biked across the bridge to Tarrytown. “It’s not as comfortable as it should be for a four- or five-year-old bridge.”
Cycling groups like Bike Tarrytown have called on the state Thruway Authority to fix the problem. Their appeals include photos of the problem areas. “The blisters are getting worse,” says Dan Convissor, one of the group’s leaders.
Bruce Wells, president of the Westchester Cycle Club, regularly hears complaints from some of the group’s 900 members.
“It’s dangerous to drive,” Wells said. “It really should be fixed. I can’t believe they have this problem. It’s basically brand new.”
Continuous corrections
According to the New York State Thruway Authority, which operates the bridge, the defects are cosmetic issues that do not pose a threat to the structural integrity of the seven-year-old westbound section of the bridge over which the trail runs.
According to a 2021 report commissioned by the Thruway Authority, the problem first emerged in 2019, about a year before the trail opened.
At the time, the asphalt surface along the roadway where the trail would later run had bumps or bubbles ranging from three to eight inches in diameter and an average height of a quarter of an inch, the report said.
“We are currently planning work to smooth out some of the bubbles on the trail,” said Thruway spokeswoman Jennifer Givner. “We have already milled the bubbles on a section of the trail and are pleased with the overall result. The agency is committed to ensuring the integrity of the trail and the safety of our visitors. We will continue to monitor its condition.”
Last year, workers milled a small section of the trail on the Rockland side. When they checked it a few months later, only one bubble had returned, Thruway officials say.
A popular addition, the trail has been used by more than 700,000 visitors since it opened in June 2020, including 80,000 this year. It provides access to six glass-walled overlooks, or belvederes, that offer stunning views of the Hudson River from the north side of the bridge.
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The 2021 report, which Silver obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, offers several theories about what caused the bubble to form.
Among other things, there is a possibility that parts of a tack coat used to bond the asphalt under the future road were worn away by the tires of the construction vehicles. Work reports and photos from the installation showed that truck tires picked up tack coat on their wheels and tracks, the report said.
Other possibilities include contamination of the adhesive layer by oil or other lubricants. Or the adhesive layer was applied at the wrong temperature.
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Thruway sues its builders
These are just the latest questions about the construction of the $4 billion bridge that have emerged in recent weeks.
Last week, the Thruway Authority sued Tappan Zee Constructors (TZC), the four-company consortium contracted to build the bridge, for breach of contract and sought at least $6 million in damages.
The Thruway said 61 of the 192 anchor tubes on the bridge’s main span will need to be upgraded after it was determined they were not as durable as promised in the contract with TZC.
TZC defends its work and accuses the Thruway of spending money on lawyers instead of paying off its debts. TZC says it is owed $960 million for its work on the bridge.
“It’s bumpy all the time”
Cyclists, on the other hand, say that the road has become so bad that they prefer to ride over the bridge.
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Benjamin Ran crossed the bridge for bike trips from 20 to 75 miles from his home in Ridgewood, New Jersey. He credits the Thruway with having the foresight to place water drains on the pedestrian side of the shared path to allow for a smooth ride for bikes.
However, he said this was mitigated by the many bumps that snaked through the blue surface.
“After seeing it like that, I don’t know if I would even continue,” Ran said. “It’s bumpy the whole way. It’s really disappointing considering what they did at the beginning and how beautiful it was.”
