New York

[Rothman]

3D-rendered imagery has just been released showing the Kamikaze Curve/Prospect Mountain project in a very recent state of near-completion.

Completion?  They haven't even let Phase 2 yet! 

[cl94]

3D-rendered imagery has just been released showing the Kamikaze Curve/Prospect Mountain project in a very recent state of near-completion.

Completion?  They haven't even let Phase 2 yet! 

I was thinking that. We'll be lucky to see the thing done by 2020.

[Rothman]

3D-rendered imagery has just been released showing the Kamikaze Curve/Prospect Mountain project in a very recent state of near-completion.

Completion?  They haven't even let Phase 2 yet! 

I was thinking that. We'll be lucky to see the thing done by 2020.

I dunno.  I think the letting for Phase II should be coming up pretty quickly.

[Duke87]

Completion?  They haven't even let Phase 2 yet! 

The interchange has already been reconfigured. What's phase 2? The NY 7 interchange?

[cl94]

Completion?  They haven't even let Phase 2 yet! 

The interchange has already been reconfigured. What's phase 2? The NY 7 interchange?

That and braiding the ramps. It will effectively add 2 more bridges. Still a long way to go.

[empirestate]

Completion?  They haven't even let Phase 2 yet! 

The interchange has already been reconfigured. What's phase 2? The NY 7 interchange?

That and braiding the ramps. It will effectively add 2 more bridges. Still a long way to go.

Oh, fine...

3D-rendered imagery has just been released showing the rebuilt I-81/NY 17 interchange in a very recent state of near-completion.

Now, everybody go enjoy the pretty pictures. 

[cl94]

Completion?  They haven't even let Phase 2 yet! 

The interchange has already been reconfigured. What's phase 2? The NY 7 interchange?

That and braiding the ramps. It will effectively add 2 more bridges. Still a long way to go.

Oh, fine...

3D-rendered imagery has just been released showing the rebuilt I-81/NY 17 interchange in a very recent state of near-completion.

Now, everybody go enjoy the pretty pictures. 

I plan to detour through the area tomorrow on my way home from spring break. If traffic conditions allow and there aren't cops, I'll do my best to grab a few pictures.

[MisterSG1]

I'm taking a little trip downstate tomorrow to get some White Castle in Nyack. Other than the Tappan Zee work, NY 17 and US 202/Bear Mountain Parkway, is there anything major that has happened in Region 8 in the past ~5 years that would be worth checking out?

And yes it is worth the hassle to get White Castle, laugh at me all you want folks, but I've made the trip to 23 Mile Road off I-94 in New Baltimore, MI many of times, usually 3 or 4 times a year to get my guilty fix of White Castle, so yes it is worth it indeed.

[Rothman]

Another fun fact about Prospect Mountain is that Phase 1 technically leaves the interchange in a less safe condition than it was to begin with.  NYSDOT had to grapple with the fact that they had to somehow pay for both phases -- they couldn't just do Phase 1 and let it sit like that for very long.  The letting for Phase 2 should be coming up here at the end of the month (March 31st; got a cool $4.5m?  You too can bid on it!).

One thorn-in-the-side problem was a small memorial park along the river that really could have been replaced in a different location and would have actually reduced the costs had such a relocation been allowed.  Unfortunately, the local opposition to that idea proved to strong for NYSDOT to overcome and probably added quite the few millions to the project to avoid affecting the park as much as possible. 

Anyway, the project must go on.

[machias]

Another fun fact about Prospect Mountain is that Phase 1 technically leaves the interchange in a less safe condition than it was to begin with.  NYSDOT had to grapple with the fact that they had to somehow pay for both phases -- they couldn't just do Phase 1 and let it sit like that for very long.  The letting for Phase 2 should be coming up here at the end of the month (March 31st; got a cool $4.5m?  You too can bid on it!).

One thorn-in-the-side problem was a small memorial park along the river that really could have been replaced in a different location and would have actually reduced the costs had such a relocation been allowed.  Unfortunately, the local opposition to that idea proved to strong for NYSDOT to overcome and probably added quite the few millions to the project to avoid affecting the park as much as possible. 

Anyway, the project must go on.

The Utica North-South Arterial project is in sort of a same state in that the project was divided into two phases and with the completion of phase one there will now be two traffic lights along the Arterial instead of the original five. This could be argued that it is less safe than the original design in that the non-55 MPH stretch will now be reduced to 1/4 mile instead of the mile that it used to be. It was rare that vehicles slowed down in the original configuration, I doubt that motorists will slow down for this in between configuration of two traffic signals. Unfortunately, to the best of my knowledge, Phase 2 of the arterial project is not even on the radar.

[cl94]

Another fun fact about Prospect Mountain is that Phase 1 technically leaves the interchange in a less safe condition than it was to begin with.  NYSDOT had to grapple with the fact that they had to somehow pay for both phases -- they couldn't just do Phase 1 and let it sit like that for very long.  The letting for Phase 2 should be coming up here at the end of the month (March 31st; got a cool $4.5m?  You too can bid on it!).

One thorn-in-the-side problem was a small memorial park along the river that really could have been replaced in a different location and would have actually reduced the costs had such a relocation been allowed.  Unfortunately, the local opposition to that idea proved to strong for NYSDOT to overcome and probably added quite the few millions to the project to avoid affecting the park as much as possible. 

Anyway, the project must go on.

I agree. I drove through it today and the weave distance east of the interchange is even shorter than before. Of course, that will be remedied with Phase 2, which, IINM, will make use of a few very visible stubs. I'll upload pictures by the end of the night.

Other than the issue over the river, I think R9 did a very nice job with the project. Signage is quite nice and moving the decision point further west helps to decrease some of the clutter.

[vdeane]

I also have so photos on (currently) the bottom of my I-81 and I-86/NY 17 photo pages.
http://www.nysroads.com/photos.php?route=i81&state=NY
http://www.nysroads.com/photos.php?route=i86&state=NY

Another fun fact about Prospect Mountain is that Phase 1 technically leaves the interchange in a less safe condition than it was to begin with.  NYSDOT had to grapple with the fact that they had to somehow pay for both phases -- they couldn't just do Phase 1 and let it sit like that for very long.  The letting for Phase 2 should be coming up here at the end of the month (March 31st; got a cool $4.5m?  You too can bid on it!).

One thorn-in-the-side problem was a small memorial park along the river that really could have been replaced in a different location and would have actually reduced the costs had such a relocation been allowed.  Unfortunately, the local opposition to that idea proved to strong for NYSDOT to overcome and probably added quite the few millions to the project to avoid affecting the park as much as possible. 

Anyway, the project must go on.

The Utica North-South Arterial project is in sort of a same state in that the project was divided into two phases and with the completion of phase one there will now be two traffic lights along the Arterial instead of the original five. This could be argued that it is less safe than the original design in that the non-55 MPH stretch will now be reduced to 1/4 mile instead of the mile that it used to be. It was rare that vehicles slowed down in the original configuration, I doubt that motorists will slow down for this in between configuration of two traffic signals. Unfortunately, to the best of my knowledge, Phase 2 of the arterial project is not even on the radar.

It was quite obvious that Phase 2 won't be for a LONG time when Region 2 went and replaced the traffic lights there.

[cl94]

Alright, excuse the poor lighting and wiper blades. It was raining when the pictures were taken:

EB 1/2 mile advance


Just past the split, which was moved about 1 mile west of its former location:


Now WB:


Past the split:


And NB at the merge:


Full album, including the state name shield still hanging on between the 2 halves of Exit 3, is here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/48110267@N04/albums/72157663760429184

[Buffaboy]

They did a nice job down there. I wish I could drive down and check it out again.

Edit: Speaking of the Arterial, I finally got to get on the new bridge. They're still hard at work on the northbound portion but it looks like the southbound part is completed. If my parents didn't hold the car hostage (they think the muffler will fall off on the Thruway and it'll have to be towed) I would have gone on it opening day.

[Rothman]

I've been waiting for someone to post that APL headed NB on I-81.  Do the lanes really follow the arrows as signed?  I seem to remember driving through there a few months ago after that new sign was put up and there was something funky about it that made me think it wasn't totally accurate (maybe another merge from the right?).

[Bumppoman]

I've been waiting for someone to post that APL headed NB on I-81.  Do the lanes really follow the arrows as signed?  I seem to remember driving through there a few months ago after that new sign was put up and there was something funky about it that made me think it wasn't totally accurate (maybe another merge from the right?).

The funky thing is that exit 5 to US-11 is between that assembly and the ramps to I-88.  So it's posted very prematurely.

[froggie]

The funky thing is that exit 5 to US-11 is between that assembly and the ramps to I-88.  So it's posted very prematurely.

It's still not wrong.  That rightmost lane is still an option lane to I-88.

[Rothman]

I've been waiting for someone to post that APL headed NB on I-81.  Do the lanes really follow the arrows as signed?  I seem to remember driving through there a few months ago after that new sign was put up and there was something funky about it that made me think it wasn't totally accurate (maybe another merge from the right?).

The funky thing is that exit 5 to US-11 is between that assembly and the ramps to I-88.  So it's posted very prematurely.

Maybe that's what threw me off.

Still, I'm thinking of this lane setup, which doesn't seem to match the APL if it's still the same:

https://goo.gl/maps/rnZsHK6YFoJ2

[cl94]

I've been waiting for someone to post that APL headed NB on I-81.  Do the lanes really follow the arrows as signed?  I seem to remember driving through there a few months ago after that new sign was put up and there was something funky about it that made me think it wasn't totally accurate (maybe another merge from the right?).

The funky thing is that exit 5 to US-11 is between that assembly and the ramps to I-88.  So it's posted very prematurely.

Maybe that's what threw me off.

Still, I'm thinking of this lane setup, which doesn't seem to match the APL if it's still the same:

https://goo.gl/maps/rnZsHK6YFoJ2

The sign is right. The second lane for I-88 is added at US 11.

[Rothman]

I've been waiting for someone to post that APL headed NB on I-81.  Do the lanes really follow the arrows as signed?  I seem to remember driving through there a few months ago after that new sign was put up and there was something funky about it that made me think it wasn't totally accurate (maybe another merge from the right?).

The funky thing is that exit 5 to US-11 is between that assembly and the ramps to I-88.  So it's posted very prematurely.

Maybe that's what threw me off.

Still, I'm thinking of this lane setup, which doesn't seem to match the APL if it's still the same:

https://goo.gl/maps/rnZsHK6YFoJ2

The sign is right. The second lane for I-88 is added at US 11.

*shrug*

Still seems odd placement for the APL to me, with the left lane drop and the lane add just down the road.

[cl94]

On a different note, I wanted to see some snow, so I drove up north and decided to clinch NY 421 today. Region 7 replaced all of the signs except for one NB reverse turn sign immediately after the sharp bend west and the distance sign for Horseshoe Lake. I doubt most of the signs are more than 5 years old, including the several reassurance shields in both directions and the NY 30 trailblazers. Everything to the snowplow turn sign near the end (other than the aforementioned sign) is new and the pavement ends sign looks new as well, but I didn't go past where the plow stopped. All of NY 421 was plowed and heavily salted. Why it was plowed to Horseshoe Lake is beyond comprehension, as there is literally nothing beyond Warren Point.

Even with all of those new signs, it may have been the roughest "paved" road I have ever driven on, with several cracks and potholes that rarely allowed me to get over 30 mph. Quite odd seeing a road with brand new signs and clearly-painted lines in that condition.

[Buffaboy]

What's the story behind the two NY-5 stubs in Syracuse? Will they ever be extended?

[froggie]

No.

Their existence dates back to the late 60s/early 70s plan for Syracuse arterials and expressways.  The stub to the east (towards Syracuse) is dead-dead...too much development in the way.  And while the stub to the west (towards Auburn) technically has nothing physically blocking it, I *HIGHLY* doubt NYSDOT will ever conjure up the funding to extend it, nor is there a serious need for it given demands elsewhere in the Syracuse area (like 31 between Clay and Cicero, for example, or replacing/upgrading the 81 viaduct).

[roadman65]

What's the story behind the two NY-5 stubs in Syracuse? Will they ever be extended?

I heard the full story on a recent road meet, but cannot remember the exact details of it.  I think it was Chris from Minnesota that told me that to the west it would have went beyond Auburn being a bypass of it.  To the east, I cannot remember if we discussed it or not, but I am sure it would have connected to I-81 somewhere.  Perhaps with I-481 which would have made most sense to connect it with creating a beltway around the city.

I once had a map years ago with its proposal and like most things when I moved, got either thrown out or lost.

[vdeane]

I remember reading that it would have come out a couple miles south of I-481 (why there and not at I-481, I have no idea).