Sound Shore

New Rochelle officials are bracing for what will likely be a years-long traffic nightmare as the state Thruway Authority replaces the bridge that carries North Avenue over Interstate 95.

While the major bridge-work won’t begin this year, the Thruway Authority is about to start an 18-month effort to relocate utility lines.

Beginning Feb. 23, parts of North Avenue will be closed. Burling Lane, from North Avenue to May Street, will be entirely closed to traffic, but open to pedestrians.

The worst of the closures, with entire lanes of North Avenue shut off to drivers, will begin in mid-April.

The city has posted details of the work and planned closures on its website. Officials plan to reach out to residents and commuters via email, text messages and by posting signage throughout the city.

Much more on all this to come in the coming days and weeks.

Back in July we told you about the nightmare-level construction set to hit the heart of New Rochelle: the replacement of the North Avenue bridge over Interstate 95. While the timing of the main portion of the work was not yet certain, preliminary work was expected to begin at the end of this year.

Well, breathe easy; even the prep-work has been pushed back. City Manager Charles Strome III said earlier this week that the relocation of utility lines to a secondary pedestrian bridge would be put off till spring. Some time after that, work on the bridge will begin, though Strome said that could be at the end of 2012 or later.

When it does happen, “That’ll be a disaster,” Strome said. “Long periods of time where North Avenue will be shut down near the train station.”

But again, nothing to worry about now.