Route 17 widening could cost $1.27 billion

It could cost up to $1.27 billion to add a third lane in each direction to Route 17 in Orange and Sullivan counties according to the final version of a study by the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT).

The DOT”™s Transportation Planning and Environmental Linkage Study (PEL) evaluated an approximately 47-mile segment of Route 17 running from Rapp Road in the Town of Thompson in Sullivan County to the highway”™s intersection with the New York State Thruway near Woodbury Commons in Orange County.

It found that the addition of one lane in each direction would cost approximately $23 million to $29 million per mile. The cost to add the lanes to the Sullivan County portion would be from $425 million to $620 million. The cost to add the lanes to the Orange County portion of the route would be from $615 million to $750 million.

The PEL study indicated that it would be prudent to make the lanes general purpose rather than reserving them for high occupancy vehicles (HOV). It said that they could always be designated as HOV lanes if that seemed warranted in the future.

The study described the area surrounding the Route 17 corridor as including a variety of rural, suburban and commercial developments, open farmland and open space. It also pointed out that the corridor includes tourism destinations including Woodbury Common Premium Outlets and Legoland in Orange County and the southern Catskill Mountains, Bethel Woods Center for the Arts and Resorts World Casino in Sullivan County.

The original sections of highway within the study area date from 1949. The study said that design standards have changed since the original design and that the existing road has sight distances and grades that do not meet the DOT”™s minimum design criteria as shown in its “Highway Design Manual.”

The majority of the Route 17 study corridor consists of two travel lanes while short sections include a third travel lane and/or auxiliary lane with similar characteristics. Median width varies from 20 feet to 50 feet. The typical section consists of 12-foot travel lanes with 4-foot left shoulders and 10-foot right shoulders

The study looked at 30 existing highway interchanges, 13 in Sullivan County and 17 in Orange County. It found that many interchange designs date from the original Route 17 construction and have simply been rehabilitated or resurfaced throughout the years as needed. The study found that upgrades to some interchanges would be appropriate while a few others could be closed.

U.S. Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney said at a news conference in Newburgh last month that money from the $1.2 trillion federal infrastructure bill might be available to help get the Route 17 widening underway.