All 43 members of the Assembly Republican Conference today requested a federal investigation by the U.S. Department of Transportation into the safety of the new Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge. 

This follows a similar call from Senator Joe Griffo (R-Rome) to Senator James Skoufis (D-Woodbury), chair of the state Senate’s Investigations and Government Operations Committee, to open a state investigation. 

Both calls follow a blockbuster report published Sunday by the Albany Times Union.

According to the paper’s reporting, "a whistleblower sounded the alarm, experts described the potential peril to the span, [and] the state’s investigation was lackluster."

But a spokesperson for the State Thruway Authority vigorously defended the bridge to Capital Tonight, saying that "extensive testing was done. Extensive studies. Extensive analysis. The traveling public needs to have confidence in this span."

That may be, but according to Sen. Griffo, better safe than sorry. He told Capital Tonight that he wants an independent investigation and has a few ideas about who could spearhead it.  

"There are a number of qualified engineering firms in the state of New York that could try to put this concern at rest," he said. "And, or utilizing the universities that have expertise in engineering. And we have some prominent universities here in New York."

The Times Union report alleged that there were structural deficiencies with the bridge stemming from a manufacturing issue with its over 1 million bolts.  

But a spokesperson told Capital Tonight that over $1 million was spent on testing and analysis of more than 500 bolts, to determine if the problem was a systemic issue or a manufacturing defect. She said, "At the end of the day, the bridge is safe."

Neither the Thruway Authority nor the Inspector General’s office can say more about the whistleblower who spoke with the Times Union about the bridge’s safety, because the case is sealed.

The Thruway Authority told Capital Tonight it has “no objection” to the case being unsealed. Neither does the whistleblower. However, TZC, the consortium that built the bridge, has petitioned a judge to keep the case sealed. 

After the publication of the Times Union article, the span’s Project Director, Jamey Barbas, spoke with The Journal News which wrote, "In 2016, the NY Thruway Authority spent $1 million on a team of experts to investigate the failed bolts used to build the bridge. A recent inspection showed ‘no additional bolt failures of concern.’”

Barbas’ full statement is below.

"In Sunday’s story, “Broken bolts: Structural problems on the Gov. Mario M. Cuomo Bridge were covered up,” the Times Union makes unfortunate, misleading, and erroneous statements that irresponsibly portrays an alarming and unsafe situation — one which is certainly not the case.

First and foremost, the bridge has been and continues to be safe for the traveling public.

The article also implies that the Thruway Authority tried to cover up this issue or did not act in a timely manner.

Upon learning of the allegations of bolt failures in 2016, not only did the Thruway Authority immediately inform the Inspector General, we spent more than one million dollars and engaged world-renowned subject matter experts, developed a testing program, conducted extensive studies, and tested well over five hundred bolts.

The tests confirmed that the bolts met or exceeded the requirements set forth by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM).  The very small number of bolts that were broken is not a cause for safety concern on such a large bridge consisting of more than one million bolts. It is important to note that there is no concern of hydrogen embrittlement. Additionally, all bolts tested were coated in Geomet, as required. None were hot-dipped galvanized. All experts agree that the steel is not defective. Prior to opening the bridge in August 2017, the experts concluded that the safety of the bridge was in no way compromised.

In addition to the extensive testing and analysis already performed, the entire structure is routinely inspected and monitored, and during our most recent biennial inspection, we found no additional bolt failures of concern.

These inspection results match the findings of our testing program which concluded that future bolt failures, if any, will be extremely rare and inconsequential.

To be clear, the massive bolted steel plate connections on the girders are not in any danger of failing and the bridge is safe. A typical bolted connection has more than 500 bolts. The built-in redundancy of the bridge system allays any potential concerns that a failure would occur.

To incite a lack of confidence in the traveling public is just reckless, irresponsible and unsound journalism. Public safety is our highest priority and shame on the Times Union for their inaccurate assertions and mischaracterizations.

As much as we would like to share more information, we are unable to discuss it further at this time."