State completes work on second phase of access project to State Fair’s orange lot

The new I-690 eastbound on-ramp bridge also accommodates pedestrians with a 10-foot wide pedestrian walkway that will help ease the journey to and from the orange lot. 

“The completion of this project is about more than just a parking lot – it’s proof that regardless of the challenges we face, New York will continue moving forward and building back better,” Cuomo said. “These new road access improvements enhance the great work we have already done at the New York State Fairgrounds, making it one of the state’s biggest tourist attractions and ensuring that when the State Fair returns it will be stronger than ever before.”  

“The completion of the orange lot ramp solves a major challenge for us and our transportation partners and will help greatly with the flow of traffic out of our largest parking lot. This improvement continues the changes begun by Gov. Cuomo that have transformed the Fair and the Fairgrounds,” New York State Fair Director Troy Waffner said.

About the project 

Construction on the $27 million first phase of the State Fair’s 65-acre orange lot project began in October 2017 and the DOT completed the project in time for the 2018 New York State Fair. 

The first phase created more than 7,000 parking spaces in the orange lot, up from the 4,000 to 5,000 that were available on the previous dirt surface. A new exit ramp to Interstate 690 west from the western end of the orange lot also allowed fairgoers direct access to I-690 from the State Fair and the Onondaga County-owned amphitheater.

Prior to the opening of this ramp, vehicles could only exit the orange lot from the Exit 7 area of I-690 during events scheduled outside of the Fair.

The second phase of the $11.18 million State Fair access improvement project took the first phase “a step further.”  In addition to the new eastbound ramp, the project negated the need for a temporary traffic signal that is in operation on I-690 for the State Fair every year.