Route 15 in Wallingford to narrow to one lane in each direction for bridge replacement
Drivers who travel on Route 15 through Wallingford may want to start thinking about alternate routes to take during the last week of August.
The number of lanes on the highway will be reduced to one in each direction, and northbound traffic will be shifted onto the southbound side to allow for the “rapid replacement” of the upper portion of a bridge that carries Route 15 north over the Quinnipiac River, according to the state Department of Transportation.
The bridge is on the section of Route 15 known as the Wilbur Cross Parkway. It’s about 1.5 miles south of Exit 61, formerly Exit 66, which takes drivers to Route 5, and about 4 miles from the Interstate 91 interchange in Meriden where major construction work is underway.
Starting at 10 p.m. Aug. 23, drivers should expect “fluctuating lane closures” on both sides of Route 15 in the area of the bridge project so lane markings can be shifted, DOT said in a recent public notice.
The traffic realignments are expected to be completed by 6 a.m. on Aug. 24, and the crossover will stay in effect until 5 a.m. on Aug. 31.
“Motorists should expect delays and should plan accordingly,” DOT said, adding that signs will be posted encouraging drivers to take other routes, such as I-91.
The Route 15 bridge was constructed in the 1940s and rehabilitated in the 1980s, DOT spokesperson Josh Morgan said. “It's time for a full replacement” of the superstructure — the upper part of the bridge, including the deck, he said.
“To minimize impacts to the public, the new bridge is being built off-site a short distance from the existing bridge,” he said. “That will allow CTDOT crews and contractors to demolish the existing bridge and move the new one into place over the course of a week.”
Doing a “rapid replacement” such as this “allows the project to move forward more quickly with less disruption to traffic,” Morgan said.
The bridge project, which started in early 2025, also includes minor repairs to the substructure and work in the river channel. There is about $13 million in federal funding and $3 million in state funding dedicated to the project, according to DOT’s website.
The timing of work like a bridge replacement is based on contract schedules, weather and planned events in the area, Morgan said.
“Additionally, as a cold weather New England state, we only have approximately six months to do this work, and we always avoid major travel holidays, such as July 4th or Labor Day, when performing this type of work,” he said.
Cassandra Day
MIDDLETOWN — The state’s transportation agency is in the early stages of an $87 million project to rehabilitate the 115-year-old Middletown swing bridge officials say has “critically deteriorated” in sections and is in overall “serious” condition.
The Providence and Worcester Railroad Bridge crosses the Connecticut River and Route 9 in Middletown just south of the Arrigoni Bridge, connecting the city to the town of Portland.
State Department of Transportation officials delivered a slideshow last week at Middletown High School explaining the project and answering questions on such topics as suicide prevention measures and the project's impact on boaters.
Many may recognize the rusty brown truss bridge as the location of portions of Billy Joel’s video for his 1993 hit “River of Dreams.”
The span is used twice a week for approximately 180 days a year, primarily by Red Technologies, a hazardous waste disposal facility in Portland, according to DOT project manager Nicholas Martin.
It is also utilized by another business, he said.
Construction is estimated to begin in fall 2028, subject to funding and permit approvals, and last 29 months, Martin said.
At this point, 100% of the project would be state-funded, he added. However, he said he expects officials to apply for federal grants that could pay for up to 80% of the work.
“The goal is to not put the full cost on Connecticut taxpayers,” Martin explained.
As far as effects on traffic, Martin said, there will be partial lane closures in downtown Middletown throughout the construction period. Each of three phases of bridge work will affect traffic on Route 9 there for months, he added.
New York-based engineering firm H&H is working on the train bridge project. The firm's design project manager Nikki Eno said construction will, in part, address the bridge’s “serious” condition, its “critically deteriorated” fenders — which protect the substructure from vessel collisions systems — and aging mechanical and electrical systems.
Although the fenders are at risk of “imminent failure,” Eno said, the bridge still remains safe for vehicles.
Cracked stones, missing mortar and vegetation growing on the substructure will be addressed as well, she said.
The goal is to improve the bridge’s original aesthetic, she added, and preserve it as a “safe and reliable crossing.”
Some members of the public asked about suicide prevention measures during the question-and-answer session, including Tia Woods.
“This isn’t just another infrastructure project,” she said. “It’s an opportunity to save lives.”
Her son died by suicide about two years ago off a Connecticut bridge, she explained.
“There is no rehabilitation project that can repair a broken heart," Woods said. "There are no projects that can prevent another family from experiencing this unimaginable loss. When we rebuild bridges, we don’t just think about steel, concrete and engineering — we think about safety. We install guardrails, lighting, other protections because we know they save lives."
She cited studies that show barriers, emergency phones, crisis signs and other interventions reduce suicides, and also “provide people in crisis with something they desperately need, which is time to reconsider."
“What is the cost of human life?” she asked.
Martin responded he has also experienced a similar loss, and to his knowledge, there haven’t been any such incidents on the train bridge.
He agreed with Woods. “There is no cost you can attach to a human life.”
Martin, clearly affected by her testimony, told her he’ll be encouraging project leaders to discuss preventing such dangers.
“I promise you we will be having these conversations,” Martin said.
Bob Petzold, president of Portland’s Petzold Marine Center, spoke next. He asked whether the team is considering effects on boaters.
“We’ve had customers go down (river) only to find the bridge closed or customers have to come back to our marina, find it closed and the railroad doesn’t answer (queries),” Petzold said.
Eno told him signs with contact information to find out about closures, along with a new tide board, will be installed.
Single channel closures will take place during substructure repairs, the installation of submarine cables, and other work, according to the slideshow.
During the first stage, expected to last three months, the bridge will remain operable.
In a subsequent stage, the bridge will stay in the closed position but remain open for trains for three winter months between 2030 and 2031. That construction is estimated to last six months.
Several environmental permits will be required, Martin said, including for a mussel survey and relocation, bat assessment, restriction of tree clearing, protection of Peregrine falcons and migrating fish, especially sturgeon.
The bridge and its approaches are included in the State Historic Bridge Inventory and State Historic Bridge Preservation Plan.
Comments and questions can be submitted until Aug. 18 by emailing DOTProject0082-0317@ct.gov. To view the slideshow, see portal.ct.gov/DOT.
Plainfield sets vote to fund legal fight against trash plant
Connor Linskey
Following tremendous opposition to a proposed trash-to-energy plant, the Plainfield Board of Selectmen has set a town meeting to identify funding for town attorneys in fighting the developer of the project.
The town meeting will take place on Wednesday, Aug. 26 at 6:30 p.m. The location of the meeting was not announced at the board of selectmen meeting on Aug. 10.
At the town meeting, there will be a briefing about the project followed by a vote on allocating money for the town attorneys. Plainfield Selectman Michael Surprenant said the trash-to-energy plant is on many peoples' minds.
"I think this is the number one thing on everybody's priority list anywhere I go, anybody I talk to," Surprenant said regarding the facility. "Obviously, it's on our priority list."
Developed by SMART Technology Systems, LLC, the proposed trash-to-energy plant would use sorting and gasification technology to convert garbage into renewable electricity and natural gas, reducing reliance on landfills and incinerators. The project is planned to be located on Norwich Road and Black Hill Road in Plainfield.
The plant is designed to process 468,000 tons of trash per year – 9,000 tons per week. SMART Technology Systems claims the project is needed, as Connecticut's existing landfills have limited capacity. In addition, the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority in Hartford closed in 2022, removing 2,000 tons of trash processing capacity per day.
What Plainfield residents are saying about the plant
Plainfield residents oppose the plant for a number of reasons, stating that the facility would cause nearby property values to drop, create extra traffic, damage the rural character of the area and cause health conditions such as asthma and COPD.
Residents voiced their opposition to the project at an informational meeting on May 7, 2025. At the budget election on June 2, 2025, voters in Plainfield decisively turned down the project when it appeared as a non-binding advisory question on the ballot. The question asked voters if they were in favor of having a proposed municipal solid waste to energy plant from SMART Technology Systems in Plainfield. The town decisively rejected the plant with 1,148 "no" votes and 125 "yes" votes.
Rural CT town opposes near 5-megawatt solar array on farmland
Don Stacom
With several large solar arrays already in town, Ellington is balking at Greenskies Clean Energy’s proposal to cover another 21 acres of farmland with panels for a roughly 5-megawatt solar farm.
North Haven-based Greenskies applied in June to the state Siting Council for permission to build, and a vote is expected before the end of November.
Numerous Ellington residents have been complaining on social media that their town along with nearby East Windsor is getting oversaturated with solar farms, all at the expense of attractive rural scenery and active farmland.
In March, even before Greenskies came forward, First Selectman Laurie Burstein led local officials in passing an ordinance opposing any further commercial solar farms of more than 1 megawatt that would significantly and irreversibly damage “prime agricultural land, valuable environmental resources, rural landscapes, and agricultural opportunities upon which the community of Ellington was founded.”
Fueling AI Data Center Growth with Green Energy
Ellington’s conservation commission agreed that could be the case with the Greenskies plan, and Assistant Town Planner John Colonese recently sent that message in a letter to the Siting Council.
“The commission disapproves of converting working farmland into a large-scale solar photovoltaic electric generating facility and expresses concern that the solar facility may impact water and wildlife resources,” Colonese wrote.
The council is reviewing an extensive application from Greenskies to build on 21 acres of a 75-acre parcel along Schoolhouse Road. The current owner wants to lease the property to Greenskies for 20 years.
The company would install about 11,000 solar panels, and direct the energy produced into the power grid.
“The project as designed will not have adverse effects on quality forested areas, agricultural land,
or wetlands, and the project will not diminish the quality of life of those who live in the vicinity.” Greenskies told the Siting Council in its application.
The General Assembly earlier this year considered bills requiring more local input on Siting Council decisions, but those measures never advanced. During hearings on those bills, lawmakers heard from many disgruntled homeowners.
“In parts of Connecticut, specifically East Windsor/Enfield we have seen massive development of solar farms in what once was pristine, natural farmland, or forest,” Matthew Mazur told lawmakers.
“Over recent years, some roads I drive down are now unrecognizable as it is just a sea of black solar panels, where their were fields of flowers or trees or farmland. There is certainly a time and place for these developments, but not at the expense of natural habitats.”
Dozens of other residents from the region agreed. But others took a different view.
“We are currently working with a solar company to use about 45 acres (in two small parcels) of our 187-acre farm. We do not think that a town should be able to tell us what we can and cannot do with our land. We feel that we are being penalized as farmers,” wrote Kimberly and Ken Shores of Ellington.
“No one else has to defend their right to do whatever they want (within zoning) with the property they have owned and paid taxes on for years,” the couple wrote. “We are getting ready to retire and instead of developing the land and losing it forever, we would like to lease the land for 20 years to a solar company to keep it whole without impact to our neighbors, wildlife, traffic, the school system, etc.”
Burstein said Ellington already has more than 300 acres covered by solar panels. She said the Siting Council should be required to take into account local long-term development plans.
“We spend years working on that, only to have no rules or regulations (when the state allows a solar farm),” she said.
Greenskies already has farmland solar arrays in East Windsor, Orange, Waterford and Durham as well as other Connecticut communities, and is proposing more in Woodbury and Morris.