Yisroel R.

After months of detours, traffic backups, and the biggest local traffic disruption of the year, the Route 59 bridge over South Pascack Road in Spring Valley is finally set to be completed within the next few hours, and expected to open soon thereafter.

The bridge has been completely closed since June while the New York State Department of Transportation carried out a major reconstruction of the aging structure. The closure shut down an important section of Route 59, forcing drivers onto surrounding roads and creating daily traffic headaches throughout Spring Valley and the greater Monsey area.

For local drivers, the biggest impact was the full closure itself. Route 59 is one of the main east-west roads through Spring Valley and Monsey, and shutting down the bridge pushed heavy traffic onto nearby streets including South Pascack Road, Forman Drive, Pipetown Hill Road, and South Central Avenue. In addition, the closure had a massive effect on the businesses in the area, including the major Marketplace shopping center, Bingo, and Target.

Pedestrians were also unable to cross the bridge during construction, and officials arranged a free taxi shuttle around the work zone for those who needed to get from one side to the other.

Crews replaced the bridge’s steel girders and concrete deck, repaired the abutments and wingwalls, installed new bridge railing and pedestrian fencing, and upgraded the structure to modern standards. The rebuilt bridge is also designed to carry all legal vehicle loads, removing a weight restriction that had been in place since 2020.

That restriction had already been affecting traffic for years. Following a bridge inspection in 2020, vehicles weighing more than 18 tons were forced to use alternate routes, including certain buses and trucks. The reconstruction now restores the bridge’s full load-carrying capacity while also giving the nearly century-old structure a major overhaul.

When the project began, officials said the contractor had four months to complete the work, with financial penalties for delays and incentives for finishing early. As the summer moved along, construction remained ahead of schedule, with paving, sidewalk work, and other finishing touches taking place in recent weeks.

The bridge dates back to 1931 and its reconstruction is part of a broader $16.4 million state project rehabilitating four bridges across Rockland and Westchester counties.

Now, after months of detours, backed-up side streets, and drivers adjusting their daily routes around the closure, normal traffic on Route 59 is finally expected to return very soon.

For thousands of Monsey and Spring Valley drivers, the reopening will mark the end of a summer-long traffic headache and the return of one of the area’s most important road connections.