The MTA announced that they have installed on-site backup generators at the Marine Park Bridge after a recent power outage shut the bridge down for hours.
“Installing generators at the Marine Parkway Bridge comes as a great relief to the thousands of families who rely on the bridge every day to travel to work or school,” said Assemblyman Phil Goldfeder. “I want to thank Chairman Prendergast and the MTA for their swift action to ensure that the bridge will be powered at all times.”
On Nov. 29, one of the two electrical feeder cables at the bridge was damaged, which led to a power outage. The outage lasted for six hours and prevented thousands of motorists from crossing. Goldfeder wrote letters to the MTA and Con Edison shortly after asking for backup generators just in case something similar happens again.
After multiple efforts, Goldfeder was notified last week that the backup generators had finally been installed at the bridge in the hope of preventing another shutdown due to the loss of power.
The Marine Parkway Bridge links the west end of the Rockaway Peninsula to Flatbush Avenue in Brooklyn. It is one of the three access points to the Rockaways, together with the Cross Bay Bridge and the Nassau Expressway.
In 2012, the bridge served as the primary evacuation route for tens of thousands of families in the days leading up to Superstorm Sandy. The bridge carries 23,000 vehicles daily, with traffic doubling during the busy summer months, according to the MTA.
“The lesson we learned from Sandy is that we need to be prepared,” said Goldfeder. “This includes ensuring our vital infrastructure is up to the challenge at all times.”
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