The aim is that construction contract for the upgrades to the Scajaquada Expressway in Buffalo would be awarded next year.
“Governor Andrew Cuomo led the way on the Scajaquada Corridor last spring when he ordered a speed limit reduction to improve safety for everyone who travels it,” said commissioner Matthew Driscoll. “The State Department of Transportation is committed to further enhancing the safety of the corridor, working with the community to make the roadway fit into the historic park it traverses, and expediting the project so that construction can get under way.”
Cuomo ordered NYSDOT to reduce the speed limit on the Scajaquada Expressway from 50 miles per hour to 30 miles per hour in May 2015, a day after a 3-year-old boy was killed when a car jumped the curb and struck the child inside Delaware Park. The governor this week directed NYSDOT to commit funding to expedite a transformative safety improvement project on the corridor.
NYSDOT and the Federal Highway Administration was already carrying out a detailed environmental review intoredesigning the roadway. That review alone could have taken up to six more years. The new plan will significantly accelerate that schedule.
NYSDOT will make additional short-term traffic calming improvements on the corridor this spring as it continues to work with the community to reach a decision about the larger project by the end of this year.
Based on public comments and meetings with local elected officials and community leaders, NYSDOT is narrowing the project focus to evaluating the feasibility of turning the Scajaquada Expressway into a low-speed, urban boulevard with two lanes in each direction. It will be in keeping with the Delaware Park area and will provide accommodation for bicycle and pedestrian traffic.
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