Niagara, Erie counties complete joint Tonawanda Creek Road project

Leaders from Erie and Niagara counties on Thursday cut the ribbon to reopen a section Tonawanda Creek Road in the Town of Clarence that has been closed since 2014. The project is part of the bicounty Tonawanda Creek slope stabilization and roadway reconstruction effort that also includes projects in the towns of Lockport and Pendleton.

“Today is a great example of what can be accomplished when local governments collaborate,” Niagara County Legislature Chairwoman Becky Wydysh said. “The Niagara County Department of Public Works took the lead on this project in close consultation with their counterparts in Erie and the result is the successful completion of the Lockport and Clarence projects, with the work in Pendleton heading quickly toward conclusion.”

“The completion of the Tonawanda Creek Road project is great news for motorists and residents, bringing the road back into service after extensive stabilization and reconstruction,” Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz said. “Slope failures and soil subsidence issues demand a different approach for remediation, far more intensive than the usual mill-and-overlay process our crews use to repair roads. This project required extensive planning and cooperation between the public works’ departments of both Erie and Niagara counties, and I thank all of our partners for their work in getting this job done as expeditiously as possible.”

According to Niagara County Department of Public Works, the total construction costs was $7.3 million. The project was awarded to UCC Constructors Inc. in November. Greenman-Pederson Inc. served as the consulting engineers. The Clarence and Lockport portions are now complete with Pendleton slated for completion by the end of August.

“By combining three different projects along the banks of Tonawanda Creek, we were able to create a single project that scored higher in rankings for state and federal funding,” Niagara County Legislator Tony Nemi noted. “Considering that southern Lockport and Pendleton are some of the fastest-growing areas in all of Western New York, we need to be finding creative ways to fund our infrastructure needs, and working across county lines produced a win/win for both Erie and Niagara.”

“This project is the result of a successful collaboration between Erie and Niagara counties,” Erie County Legislator Ed Rath added. “The residents of Clarence and neighboring communities have been patiently waiting for this news since the road’s closure in 2014. I am glad both county governments could work together in support of taxpayers who deserve safe, reliable infrastructure.”

Project Description

Clarence site:

A 400-foot-long segment of Tonawanda Creek Road between Westphalinger and Northfield roads failed and partially slid toward Tonawanda Creek in 2014. The road has been closed to through traffic since the failure.

The cause of the failure was determined to be a weak layer of underlying soil below the roadway. This project utilized dry mix soil columns to strengthen the soil in order to support the roadway. The process mixes cement with the existing soil in the area of and through the depth of the failure. A load transfer platform is constructed on top of the columns, followed by a mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) wall to support the fill up to the grade of the road. The roadway was then reconstructed, along with new drainage, guide rail, signs and striping. The cost for this site was about $2.1 million. Work was completed earlier this month.

Lockport site:

A 1,000-foot-long segment of Tonawanda Creek Road, near Lockwood Lane, experienced distress including guide rail displacement and pavement cracking resulting from a slope failure. The slope stabilization performed under this project included a stream bank revetment (bank armoring) and the construction of a mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) wall to support the fill for the roadway. The roadway was then reconstructed, along with new drainage, guiderail, signs and striping. The cost for this site was about $1.1 million. Work was completed in April.

Pendleton site:

This site is a 2.5-mile segment of Tonawanda Creek Road between Campbell Boulevard and Irish Road. The first 0.7 of a mile at the Campbell Boulevard end was milled and overlaid with two courses of asphalt. The remainder was reconstructed. The original concrete roadway was milled and then rubblized, to be used as subbase for the new roadway. The project includes new closed and open drainage throughout and new guiderail, signs and striping. The cost for this site is about $4.1 million, with completion anticipated by the end of this month.