VHB is part of the design-build team that will replace the eastbound Kosciuszko Bridge carrying the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway (I-278) over Newtown Creek between Brooklyn and Queens. The $555 million project, the largest contract ever taken on by the New York State Department of Transportation, will improve safety and reduce local congestion. The project is being led by the Skanska-Kiewit-ECCO III Joint Venture in association with lead design firm HNTB. VHB is responsible for traffic analysis of Work Zone Traffic Control plans prepared by the design-build team. Construction staging is expected to require lane or roadway closures on both the elevated I-278 mainline and local roadways in the vicinity of the bridge, which would impact traffic flow on the already congested roadways near the bridge. VHB is using traffic analysis and simulation techniques to assess the effectiveness of Work Zone Traffic Control plans in minimizing the impact on vehicular traffic. VHB will also monitor the effectiveness of these plans during construction to determine necessary measures that could improve traffic flow. "VHB's considerable experience in the preparation and analysis of Work Zone Traffic Control plans in New York along with our familiarity with local and state agency requirements will help the design-build team obtain lane closure permits and approvals," said Babu Veeregowda, VHB principal overseeing the firm's work on this project.