Pipe study to close parts of Sunrise Highway from Bellmore to Lynbrook

The county will continue its inspection of an aqueduct under the Sunrise highway on Sunday, to determine if the 110-year-old pipeline can be used to transport wastewater from the Bay Park Sewage Treatment Plant to the Cedar Creek outfall pipe.

During the inspection, portions of the road will be closed in Bellmore, Merrick, Baldwin, Wantagh, Lynbrook, Rockville Centre and Freeport, mostly during nighttime hours, according to County Executive Ed Mangano’s office.

If the aqueduct can be used, officials hope that it could help rehabilitate the Western Bays, which they said are being choked by seaweed overgrowth accelerated by the pumping of effluent from Bay Park.

“If proven useable, the reutilization of this pipeline will save taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars while also improving water quality in Reynolds Channel, Hewlett Bay, Brosewere Bay, and the Rockaways,” Mangano said in a release.

During the inspection and assessment, two lanes of eastbound traffic will be affected, but the majority of the work will be performed in stages on shorter sections of the Sunrise Highway during off-peak, nighttime hours between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., according to Mangano. Night construction is scheduled for Sunday through Thursday in the eastbound direction, from Lynbrook to Wantagh. At least one travel lane will remain open at all times.

Mangano added that people should consider alternate routes such as Merrick Road to avoid slow traffic, especially during the start of daily night construction around 10 p.m.

The project is being performed by AECOM, USA, Inc. under contract with the Nassau County Department of Public Works, and is scheduled to be completed in early summer.