Cloudy with occasional showers. Thunder possible. Low 73F. SW winds shifting to NW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 60%..

Cloudy with occasional showers. Thunder possible. Low 73F. SW winds shifting to NW at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 60%.

The city is targeting 2026 to start construction of a new Grand Street Bridge once federal reviews are complete.

The city is targeting 2026 to start construction of a new Grand Street Bridge once federal reviews are complete.

With community support, money set aside and a federal environmental review underway, it is estimated that replacement of the Grand Street Bridge still will not take place for more than three years.

But after 119 years, that probably shouldn’t prove too long a wait.

The bridge, opened in 1903, connects Maspeth to Brooklyn over Newtown Creek. It has been on Community Board 5’s annual capital project list now for several years.

The city’s Department of Transportation has targeted 2026 for the start of construction once the federal studies are completed.

Gary Giordano, district manager of Community Board 5, said in a recent telephone interview that part of the environmental study involves the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers weighing whether the new bridge should be movable to allow for water traffic.

“I think the question is will this be a fixed bridge or a movable bridge,” Giordano told the Chronicle on Wednesday. “A movable bridge, I think, would be a lot more expensive.”

The existing bridge is a swing bridge. It sits on a cylindrical structure on an island built in the creek and was designed to swing 90 degrees to align parallel to the center of the creek. Tall boats and ships then can pass on either side.

Built in the era of Model A Fords, the bridge and its steel grate deck — one can look straight down into the water through the deck — has become as infamous as the Superfund cleanup waterway that runs beneath it.

It is too narrow for two large vehicles, such as trucks or buses — school buses and MTA vehicles rely on it — to pass when headed in opposite directions.

There are sidewalks on both sides of the bridge to allow for pedestrian traffic.

It is narrower than the roadways that feed it at both ends, and drivers in one direction must sometimes stop to allow larger vehicles to cross before continuing themselves.

Representatives of the Army Corps of Engineers could not be reached before deadline.

The city DOT’s Community Outreach team is accepting input on the project from members of the public at TheNewGrandStreetBridge@dot.nyc.gov.

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