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Albany Times-Union takes a look at the I-88 Collapse

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In this past Sunday's (August 20) Albany Times-Union ran a series of three articles covering the I-88 culvert collapse on June 28.

Rebuilding in the Face of Tragedy - Covers the efforts of the emergency repair team that has worked non-stop since July 2nd to repair the culvert, cover with fill, and pave the highway. They hope to have the westbound lanes reopened by Labor Day.

Truckers' deaths on I-88 still resonate - Tells the story of David Swingle's and Patrick O'Connell's fateful ride the morning of June 28.

Traffic's return to old main drag is hardly a boon - Features businesses and residents along the detour route (NY 7). Some are seeing an increase in business while most are not.

Commentary:

Great work in all three articles in looking at the effects of the collapse from multiple story angles. First, the repairs. The culvert that collapsed was 33 years old, it received a 5 of 7 rating in 2004 and "Inspectors reported "corrosion with minor to moderate section loss for the full culvert length" and "minor perforations" near the outlet, as well as "severe erosion beneath the end left concrete slope paving, exposing the outside of the pipe from below the concrete for the full slope length." The state also briefly considered erecting a temporary bridge to carry I-88 traffic while the culvert was replaced, but decided against it.

Second, the stories of both Mr. Swingle and Mr. O'Connell tells more about the details of the foggy and rainy morning of June 28th, and also the family and friends who deeply love and miss both gentlemen.

Finally, the story about residents and business routes is very interesting. NY 7 for many years was the main route to connect Binghamton to Albany and points east. When I-88 opened, NY 7 became a sleepy backroad. Businesses that once thrived on Route 7 either closed or had to look at reative ways to get travelers off the interstate. Now, with NY 7 pushed back into service not every business has seen a boom. In fact, some businesses and most residents can't wait until the Interstate reopens!
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