Water Tunnel Traffic Headaches

By [Alexandra Waldhorn] The next stop for revamping the city"s antiquated water system is East 59th Street. In late July or early August, a three-year phase of the half-century long project to build a third water tunnel will start, linking New Yorkers to a more modern and plentiful water supply. The project involves building a shaft to allow water from hundreds of feet below the city to reach street level, and it will be accompanied by some heavy traffic adjustments. â??The area is high traffic, so we will have some significant lane closures to accommodate, said Shane Ojar, director of community outreach at the city"s Department of Design and Construction during Community Board 8"s June 2 transportation committee meeting. Crews will work continuously at the shaft, on East 59th street at First Avenue, but traffic lanes will remain open. On weekends from 12:01 a.m. Saturday to 5 a.m. Monday, East 59th Street, will be closed to through traffic between Second and Third avenues. Local and emergency vehicles will be allowed to pass. There will also be no left turn allowed on Second Avenue. In effect, East 59th Street will become a one-way street, westbound. Weekend traffic to the Queensboro Bridge will be directed around the street closures. â??The lane closures for this project are necessary to accommodate the work operations, which are the excavation of the pipes and connection to the shaft, said Craig Shin, spokesperson for the Department of Design and Construction, in a phone interview. Ojar informed the board that specifics of the work have yet to be fully disclosed because the project"s registration hasn"t been completed yet. â??We"re in a waiting period right now, Ojar said. â??As soon as I have it, you"ll have it.