Union Street Bridge Snafu Delays Park Slope Commuters: Witness

BROOKLYN, NY — Tenstar Hasan was trying to get from Park Slope to his workplace west of the Gowanus Canal Tuesday about 9 a.m. when he got stuck waiting for the Union Street Bridge.

"I was there with over 15 people for about a half hour," he told Patch, noting that the movable bridge span wasn't closing properly to allow for through traffic. "After that I used another road."

The Department of Transportation didn't specify what caused the holdup Tuesday, but said the bridge is being utilized more frequently during the multi-million Gowanus Canal cleanup process.

"This Union Street and 3rd Street bridges are opening with increased regularity to facilitate the US EPA’s historic, full-scale dredging of the Gowanus Canal," said DOT spokesperson Vin Barone.

"We understand the importance of the these local connections between Brooklyn communities and apologize for the inconvenience."

Hasan, who works in construction, though, told Patch he thinks the issue was a technical one.

"I saw one half going down very quickly and the other one going down slowly and it wasn't leveling," he said. "I think the problem is the motor is not working properly."

The Union Street Bridge, which is one of five spanning the Gowanus Canal, was built in 1905 and its motors suffered water damage during Superstorm Sandy, according to a DOT presentation.

It closed briefly in 2020 for repairs, Patch reported.