Those living or traveling through Norwood will once again have to brace for another round of patience-challenging congestion and temporary bus route changes as the city will finally resume . completion of a massive sewer replacement project in the neighborhood. It was supposed to start this week, but the city has put it off for another few weeks.

The project would’ve been completed a lot sooner, with the city placing the holdup on the state’s largest utility, while also pointing to the contractors’ ongoing talks with the MTA over the temporary bus stops.

The epicenter of the project will once again happen along Bainbridge Avenue, a busy arterial roadway that virtually cuts through the neighborhood, serving as a nexus for travelers in and around Norwood. There, at the intersection of East Gun Hill Road and Jerome Avenue by the Woodlawn #4 station (Jerome and Bainbridge avenues intersect at that point), the city will temporarily convert the two-way street into a one-way as crews with the city Department of Design and Construction (DDC) will replace old trunk water mains, a project that’s extended toward north toward the Major Deegan Expressway junction.

Work on this project would’ve been completed in November, but construction crews with EIC Associates, Inc., a New Jersey-based contractor, were hamstrung by Con Edison, which took a lot longer to remove its utilities.

Allan Drury, a spokesman for Con Edison, said the holdup stemmed from the city not releasing permits to relocate the utility’s electrical equipment found below the area under construction. “The permits to perform that work were previously held by the city’s contractor. That contractor stopped work in the area in question in late 2017,” said Drury. “The contractor later returned to the area referenced, but only to work on the city’s underground equipment, not Con Edison electrical equipment.”

This new disruption also includes the temporary removal of two bus stops and dozens of parking spots. Work on the project was expected to begin Oct. 7, according to a traffic message board at the foot of the Bainbridge and Jerome avenue intersection, but no construction was visible.

A spokesperson for DDC said the agency is still “coordinating with DOT and MTA to reroute buses before any lane closures go into effect. We will resume work on Bainbridge Avenue between East Gun Hill Road and Jerome Avenue in late October/early November.”

A crossing guard, meantime, admitted getting around is “going to be tough.” “This area has a lot of hospitals and those transporting the elderly/disabled will also be affected. If you come here around 4:30 to 5 p.m., you’ll see how bad it gets. I live on Steuben Avenue and I can hear the traffic build up. All I hear are the cars honking and beeping at one another in frustration,” said the crossing guard, a Norwood resident, who asked not to be named.

Samantha, another resident, has noticed the ongoing construction on Bainbridge Avenue, which she feels has been going on “forever.” “I hope the roads are repaved as well because they are in terrible conditions. This is going to be bad for my commute and those around the area,” she said.

One resident reading a newspaper just across from Children’s Hospital at Montefiore at the intersection of Bainbridge Avenue and East Gun Hill Road who took the upcoming construction in stride, said, “Something needs to be done” on the construction. “Let it be done,” he said.

The first phase of the project resulted in a commuting nightmare for drivers as they were forced to take the left onto East Gun Hill Road from Bainbridge Avenue if they were looking to head north towards the Major Deegan Expressway. They were diverted to a single lane on Jerome Avenue, where getting to the expressway from there would often take about 30 minutes given the number of buses that stopped in front of the Woodlawn #4 subway station, impeding traffic.

Community Board 7, which covers Norwood, was alerted to the changes and told once again that the eastbound Bx16, northbound Bx34, northbound Bx10, and BxM4 buses will also be rerouted to East Gun Hill Road instead of heading north on Bainbridge Avenue from East Gun Hill Road. Temporary bus stops will be set up on Jerome Avenue and East 212th Street and Jerome and Bainbridge avenues while work gets under way.

DDC has overseen the estimated $45 million project since it began in 2016 as a way of replacing century-old sewer pipes connected to the Croton Water Filtration Plan, which reentered service in 2015. EIC Associates, Inc. was chosen for the contract that was executed in 2015.

The project is expected to be completed by late winter 2020.

CB7 members were at least satisfied with the advance warnings, having received them as early as June. At the latest Community Board 7 Traffic & Transportation Committee, which holds oversight over matters relating to roads, streets, and modes of transit, Edgar Ramos, the chair, sympathized with the impending project. “They really don’t have a choice in the situation, because there aren’t many options as far as modes of travel for that area. You got Bainbridge [Avenue] and then you got Jerome [Avenue] so it’s going to be a nightmare for the community, I know that,” said Ramos.

Editor’s Note: An earlier draft of this article, along with the print version, reported the project would be completed in summer 2020.