‘Bigge’ team tackles Kosciuszko Bridge New York demolition 38 June 2017 E N V I R O N M E N T The Australasian and global Enerpac high-pressure hydraulic and heavy lifting organisation was involved recently in a project to demolish a huge landmark honouring the Polish national hero, General Tadeusz Kosciuszko, whose name adorns Australia’s highest mountain. But this job had nothing to do with 2228m high peak in the Snowy Mountains named in 1840; rather it involved the 1828m span of the Kosciuszko Bridge in New York, which is actually two bridges that span Newtown Creek between the New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. Opened in 1939, the truss bridge is part of Interstate 278, and is known locally as the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway. The bridge is also named for Tadeusz Kosciuszko, who – in addition to being a Polish Army officer and statesman revered by the explorer Pawel Edmund Strzelecki – was a Polish volunteer who served as a general in the American Revolutionary War. Unfortunately, the bridge bearing his name in the US became known as a notorious — and perhaps the worst — bridge for bottlenecks in New York City. To reduce congestion and traffic delays, and increase traffic capacity, the New York State Department of Transportation is spending $US554 million to replace the aging truss bridge with a majestic cable-stayed bridge. The new bridge began accommodating two-way traffic in early this year, and demolition of the old spans will take place mid-2017. Bigge Crane and Rigging was selected to supply the equipment to remove the largest span, which is 125 feet high, and 300 feet in length. To safely meet the aggressive demolition schedule,
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