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Fairport lift bridge reopening delayed again

Fairport Lift Bridge
Village of Fairport
Fairport Lift Bridge

The reopening of the Fairport Lift Bridge has been delayed again.

The more than century-old bridge was closed back in September 2019 for repairs. The bridge had been expected to reopen in November of 2020, but that was delayed due to supply chain issues and having to fabricate certain parts for the 107-year-old bridge.

Most recently it was hoped the bridge could reopen in April, but on Friday, the New York State Department of Transportation said that due to those supply chain and fabrication issues, the opening of the bridge has been delayed until later this spring. No other specifics on the potential date for reopening were available. The DOT said that it will continue to communicate with the village on the schedule for reopening over the coming weeks.

Bryan White is Village Manager in Fairport. He would obviously like to see the bridge open sooner than later, noting that with COVID-19 infection rates hopefully continuing to come down, and more people getting outside, he’d like to have the bridge in operation to help businesses and other venues in the village.

“And having the bridge interfere with that progress we’re making within the village of Fairport obviously is a letdown, so the sooner that the DOT can acquire the parts necessary to get this bridge done and get the work done would be most appreciated,” White said.

The Village of Fairport has had a campaign going on for some time now called, “Fairport on the Rise” to help highlight various attractions in the village.

Randy Gorbman is WXXI's director of news and public affairs. Randy manages the day-to-day operations of WXXI News on radio, television, and online.