2 Bridges to Replace Ailing BQE Span

Two new bridges will replace the congested and dangerous Kosciuszko Bridge that connects Brooklyn and Queens on the BQE, transportation officials told NBC 4 New York.

The first new bridge will have six lanes, with traffic moving in three lanes in each direction. It is set to open early next year.

The second bridge, which is projected to open in 2020, will have four westbound lanes.

The project will hopefully curtail traffic accidents on the current span, which occur six times more frequently than on other six-lane roads, Robert Adams, project manager for the state department of transportation.

Unlike the Kosciuszko, the new bridges will have shoulders where drivers can pull over, which will lower the amount of traffic accidents, Adams said.

The bridges will also ease congestion because they are not built on an incline, he said.

"One of the reasons some of that truck traffic should be reduced when the new bridge opens - it's no longer an incline which means drivers won't have to slow down so much," Adams said.

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