Downtown Crossing News for Monday, August 3

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Downtown Crossing Phase 2

Welcome to this week’s new subscribers to Downtown Crossing construction news!

Construction of Downtown Crossing Phase 2, the reconnection of Orange Street, began in Spring 2019 and is planned for completion in summer 2021.

Throughout the second year of construction (summer of 2020 until summer of 2021), work areas will be more intense as the new intersection reconnecting Orange Street across the former Route 34 highway is built. As a result of larger and more intense work areas, there will be increased impacts to commuters.

In addition to the latest construction and project news, this newsletter provides information on underutilized driving routes into Downtown New Haven as well as public transit options for travel to, from, and within New Haven.

With the increased traffic impacts expected this year, now is the perfect time to experiment with alternate driving routes and/or public transit options that may ease your daily commute. Please see the articles near the bottom of this email for more information on alternate driving routes and public transit options.

Construction News & Schedule

for the TWO-WEEK period of

Monday, August 3 - Friday, August 14, 2020

Overview

Over the two-week period of Monday, August 3 - Friday, August 14, 2020 there will be no changes to the existing traffic patterns. Please see below for information on both day and night construction work hours, as well as reminders about existing detours and road closures.

LANE CLOSURES

Throughout the two-week period of Monday, August 3 - Friday, August 14, 2020 , various single lane closures may occur on the following roads to accommodate construction:

Inbound & Outbound Service Drives: roads that provide access to parking under 100 College Street and go on to provide access to the Air Rights Garage
State Street at North Frontage Road: near the intersection of Union Avenue and Water Street
South Frontage Road: between South Orange Street and College Street
Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard: between Orange Street and Church Street

REMINDER: ORANGE STREET DETOUR

As a reminder, half of a block of Orange Street, between MLK Blvd. and George Street will be closed until late August to allow for construction. During this temporary closure, drivers will not be not be able to turn right onto Orange Street from MLK Blvd.

A detour will provide motor vehicle access to this block of Orange Street. The detour is as follows: continue on MLK Boulevard to Church Street, take a right at Church Street, another right onto George Street, and then a right onto Orange Street to access the Knights of Columbus parking lots and/or Coliseum site parking. On-road signage will alert drivers to the detour.

The extra traffic on MLK Blvd., coupled with the traffic light at Church Street, is likely to cause traffic congestion and delays. Please consider an alternate route to access this area. Alternate route options are listed in articles towards the bottom of this email.

A map indicating the portion of Orange Street to be temporarily closed is included below.

REMINDER: PORTION OF NORTH FRONTAGE ROAD PERMANENTLY CLOSED

The portion of North Frontage Road that begins at Water Street/State Street and ends at Orange Street (behind the Knights of Columbus tower) is permanently closed.

This closure will provide space for the construction of a new intersection that will reconnect Orange Street to South Orange Street across the former Rt. 34 highway, connecting Downtown to Union Station. In the future, the land that now encompasses this portion of North Frontage Road will serve as a public green space and is planned to include a bicycle and pedestrian path.

A map indicating the portion of North Frontage Road to be permanently closed is included below

WORK HOURS

Daytime work hours are weekdays between 7 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Any construction work that may impact traffic flow will not occur between 7 and 9 a.m. or between 3 and 6 p.m. on Monday through Friday.

Nighttime work hours are between 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. Night work will occur during the two-week period of Monday, August 3 - Friday, August 14, 2020. All night work during this two-week period will occur behind the existing work zone area on the blocked off portion of Orange Street, behind the Knights of Columbus tower and the Coliseum site parking lot and is not expected to impact traffic flow. Please see the map below for the exact location of the night work on the temporarily closed portion of Orange Street.

Road signage will alert drivers and pedestrians to work areas and lane closures.

Please pay attention to this signage, slow down, and stay safe!

Road Closures

Construction Work Areas & Travel Lanes

Pedestrian Detours

Pedestrian Detour at the Union Avenue Underpass

A minor pedestrian detour went into effect on Monday, March 9, 2020 and was originally expected to last until mid-May. However, this detour will now remain in place until September to accommodate the installation of a public art project on the west side of the Union Avenue underpass, where Union Avenue meets North Frontage Road, State Street, and Water Street. Pedestrians will be able to access the area simply by using the sidewalk at the east side of the bridge, which is located just across the street.

Below:

Photo of the vicinity of the Union Avenue underpass pedestrian detour
Rendering of "Lighting Your Way" be Sheila Levrant de Bretteville of Site Projects New Haven.

Pedestrian Detour around South Frontage Road

A pedestrian detour is in place to accommodate construction on South Frontage Road near Church Street. The detour went into effect on Tuesday, August 13, 2019 and was originally scheduled to last for approximately one year, until the summer of 2020. However, the detour will now remain in place until the summer of 2021 to accommodate construction. Signage directs pedestrians to a safe route around construction; a map of the pedestrian detour is included below. Pedestrians are urged to follow the detour to stay safe as construction is in progress.

Below: South Frontage Road Pedestrian Detour . Red area is construction zone, green shows pedestrian detour around construction.

Avoid Delays:

Transit options to, from, and within New Haven

Avoid the stress of driving and travel delays due to highway congestion — explore transit options to, from, and within New Haven!

Transit to/from New Haven

Metro North : – New Haven Line Service between New Haven and shoreline towns to the west and NYC.

Shore Line East : Service between New Haven and shore line towns east to New London.

Hartford Line : Service between New Haven and Springfield, with stops in Meriden, Wallingford, Berlin, Hartford, Windsor, and Windsor Locks.

Transit within New Haven

Free Downtown/Union Station Shuttle : Free shuttle runs between New Haven’s Union Station and seven Downtown New Haven locations, Monday-Friday 6 AM- 10 PM.

CT transit Bus Service : Local bus service throughout New Haven and surrounding towns.

Go New Haven Go: Go New Haven Go promotes health and well-being across the region by advancing safe, cost effective, and convenient transportation for getting into and around New Haven.

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Avoid Delays: Alternate Driving Routes

Alternate Driving Routes

To avoid delays due to construction, consider entering or exiting the highway outside of the project area. There are many options that avoid Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and South Frontage Road, yet still provide easy access to Downtown New Haven. Consider experimenting with these travel options. Try them out and let us know what you think!

Some options to explore:

Enter or exit I-95 on Long Wharf/Sargent Drive, utilizing Sargent Drive and Brewery Street to Water Street to access Downtown.

Enter or exit I-95 on Long Wharf/Sargent Drive, utilizing the Church Street Bridge to access Downtown.

Enter or exit I-91 on State Street

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