As DOT plans a $12 million project to improve exit four off the Northway, Albany International Airport officials said they are hopeful more funding will be made available to build an exit three.
Improvements have been planned for decades, and a notable 1995 proposal made by Gov. Mario Cuomo planned $88 million to improve transportation and construct an exit. Another 2004 plan had an exit in the works by spring of 2009, which never came to fruition, according to the Albany County Airport Authority.
The New York State Department of Transportation is now planning for a project that would repair the bridge over the Northway at exit four, and it is unclear if airport infrastructure will be improved beyond that.
Those bridges over Albany-Shaker Road have to be replaced, said Peter Van Keuren, a spokesman for DOT.
Clough Harbour is the design consultant for the project and Phase I of the project would be to replace the bridges for the Northway over Albany-Shaker Road. That project alone would come with a $12 million price tag.
He said beyond that depends on the government’s pocket book.
`Funding we still have to find out about. We don’t know exactly what’s going to be done with that,` Van Keuren said. `The more major the project, the bigger the price tag.`
Development for proposed project began in 2005, and opening bids are expected in the fall of 2012. Construction is planned to begin in the winter months leading into 2013 and the project is expecting to be completed by fall, 2015, according to information from DOT.
`Once we have a final design it goes out to bid for a contractor to actually do the work,` he said.
The bridge replacement will come from state and federal funding and the Capital District Transportation Committee will help coordinate the project.
The project could improve traffic on Wolf Road, which features a number of commercial buildings that generate a high volume of cars, Van Keuren said.
Doug Myers, a spokesman for Albany International Airport, said airport officials have been pushing for better access to the airport for years and quipped that if there was an exit three, `you’d already be on the Northway.`
John O’Donnell, chief executive officer of the Albany County Airport Authority and a civil engineer, said he is aware that DOT is interested in a bridge replacement for exit four sometime down the road, but is hopeful that a larger commitment could be made.
`We would like to see a much greater investment in that intersection,` he said.
O’Donnell said other options are being discussed by DOT, such as a single point urban interchange, or SPUI, that would increase traffic flow at exit four without creating a new exit, but that alternative is not a first choice.
`You can move a large amount of cars through at one time,` he said of a SPUI.
While a SPUI is something being considered by DOT O’Donnell said he would consider that a compromise. And prefers a full-on construction of an exit south of exit four.
The construction to exit six, just north of the airport is a SPUI, and O’Donnell said DOT will have the benefit of gauging its success before moving forward with this project.
O’Donnell said his biggest concerns are traffic flow and easy access to the airport, which could be confusing for people who do not know the area well.
He said with the growth of Latham, Colonie and Tech Valley, and with contributors like Global Foundries, the region is expected to rapidly grow in population and traffic, and any construction to the bridge over I-87 or a new exit should reflect that possibility.
He said the `stellar safety record and great colleges and universities,` are also going to contribute to the areas growth, and need for improved infrastructure.
O’Donnell also said one concern that can arise from constructing an access route south of exit four is that wetlands south of the airport will need to be mitigated. He said the airport owns approximately 120 acres and that new wetlands could be created, if needed.
Beau Duffy, a spokesman for Rep. Paul Tonko D-Amsterdam, said the current administration has put an emphasis on infrastructure improvements and said the Airport Authority should try to take advantage of whatever federal and stimulus money is available.
Tonko acknowledges growth in the area, Duffy said, and agrees that Global Foundries and other technology-based business will contribute to increased air and road traffic.
He it is also possible to get funding through a 2005 bill signed by President George Bush. The bill is called the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users, is almost expired and up for reauthorization, Duffy said.
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