UTICA, N.Y. — The New York State Department of Transportation (DOT) has begun a $2.3 million project to enhance public safety along North Genesee Street in Utica with plans to add a new turning lane, traffic signal, and other improvements to improve traffic flow and reduce congestion.
“This project will make it even easier to access the city of Utica and provide vibrancy to an already exciting destination in the Mohawk Valley,” DOT Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez said in a news release.
The four-lane, undivided highway connects the city’s downtown with New York State Thruway Exit 31. As part of the project, the DOT will replace the existing yield sign at the intersection of North Genesee Street and the Exit 31/I-790 northbound off ramp with a traffic signal that will stop traffic on North Genesee Street and allow motorists to enter from that ramp. The new signal will also provide pedestrians with push-button access to the crosswalk.
The DOT will also construct an additional right-turn lane from the Exit 31/I-790 northbound off ramp to North Genesee Street and a second right-turn lane to allow motorists time to enter the lane that corresponds with their destination. This will also provide added capacity for vehicles stopped at the new signal.
In order to complete the project, the DOT anticipates closing the northbound ramp for about four weeks in late summer, with a signed detour in place using the southbound ramp instead with a temporary traffic signal at the southbound ramp.
Other planned improvements include new planters on the medians along State Route 5S from Schuyler Street to Broad Street and on North Genesee Street from State Route 5S to Wurz Avenue.
“North Genesee Street has seen an incredible amount of redevelopment over the past decade,” Utica Mayor Michael Galime said. “Whether it is entertainment, food and beverage, or hotels, the gateway between North Utica and the city center is now a pedestrian multimodal hub. Focusing on how to maintain Exit 31 and the corridor as a functional component of our commercial strength in Utica, while giving the ability for locals, business travelers, and tourists to utilize North Genesee Street on foot, is an essential component of our success on the east side and west side of our flourishing canal and harbor districts.”
The DOT expects to complete the project — funded with a mix of federal and state funding — in December.