Mayor Kraham Announces Completion of Jarvis St. Railroad Bridge Improvements Ahead of Schedule

Jarvis St. Bridge Latest to Receive Improvements Following Last Year's City-Funded Report

(BINGHAMTON, N.Y.)—Mayor Jared M. Kraham on Wednesday announced Jarvis Street has reopened to traffic after work to improve the railroad bridges concluded ahead of schedule this week.

The bridge work was the latest rehabilitation project by Norfolk Southern in Binghamton since the City released a report last year documenting the poor condition of several of its railroad bridges.

Mayor Kraham said: "The Jarvis Street railroad bridges are no longer crumbling eyesores that residents have to pass under while traveling through the First Ward. Thanks to long-overdue action by Norfolk Southern following pressure from my administration, the bridges are the latest in Binghamton to receive significant improvements after years of neglect. I appreciate the railroad company's responsiveness to the City's 2023 report and the hard work of the construction crews, who finished the project weeks ahead of schedule."

As part of the improvement project, the Jarvis Street railroad bridges received repairs to their concrete columns and parapets, including work to fix exposed rebar, and fresh paint.

A portion of Jarvis Street between Charlotte Street and Clinton Street had been closed to traffic since the end of July, when Vector Construction began work on the bridges.

Last year, Mayor Kraham announced the City would hire an engineering firm to conduct visual inspections of railroad bridges in Binghamton following decades of inaction by railroad companies to maintain the privately owned structures.

The firm, Binghamton-based HUNT-EAS, released a 900-page report following the inspections that found a majority of the bridges to be in poor or severe condition. Nearly half the bridges were found to have at least one "significant structural and/or safety concern that should be investigated and addressed by the Railroad," according to the report.

The Jarvis Street railroad bridges were two of seven bridges found to be in "severe condition."

Two other bridges rated in the report as "severe"—located on Glenwood Avenue—were rehabilitated in a project by Norfolk Southern late last year.

The work comes after Mayor Kraham called on the railroad company to begin repairs following release of the City report. Shortly after, Norfolk Southern provided the City with a detailed plan to repair some of the bridges found to be in the worst condition.

In addition to the bridges on Jarvis Street and Glenwood Avenue, the plan includes replacement of the Front Street railroad bridge later this year and improvements to other bridges, including on Murray Street and Water Street, next year.

Norfolk Southern has hired contractors to complete the bridge work at no cost to City taxpayers.

Most of the railroad bridges in the City of Binghamton are owned by Norfolk Southern. Three are owned by New York Susquehanna & Western (NYSW).

Unlike road bridges, which are the responsibility of public entities, railroad bridges are the responsibility of the private railroad companies and are regulated by the federal government.