The saying goes: "There are two seasons: winter and construction."

New York is working on several road projects, big and small, costing billions of dollars. From Albany to Buffalo, you are going to see a lot of flashing lights and a construction zone ahead sign.

There are three projects with either shovels in the ground or with studies soon underway. There’s Reimagining I-787, fixing the 1960s highway that runs along Albany and the Hudson River. The I-81 viaduct project is creating an improved corridor through Syracuse that meets transportation needs. Then there’s the Kensington Expressway Project in Buffalo. The project was expected to create a tunnel over part of the existing expressway with green space above it. "Was" is the key word there.

What You Need To Know

  • More than 100 NYSDOT projects are underway at any given time  

  • The I-81 Viaduct Project is the largest in NYSDOT history

  • A $34 billion capital plan in year four of five 

The New York State Department of Transportation maintains more than 43,000 lane miles of state highways.

“On any given time, we have hundreds of projects that we're implementing and hundreds more in the works," said Joe Morrissey, assistant commissioner of strategic communications for NYSDOT.

Beginning in Albany, with the state’s spending plan for this next year, $35 million for the next phase of the Reimagining I-787 study was earmarked.

“We will be releasing, planning and linkages study sometime this summer," Morrissey said. "And we will be starting at the same time, we'll be starting to draft an environmental impact statement.”

The vision is to reconnect the Capital Region in a new way.

“We're looking to enhance safety and connectivity between neighborhoods and at the same time provide more access to the Hudson River, which is one of the Capital Region's best assets," he said. 

It will be a few years before you see shovels in the ground. A Capital Region project that is underway right now, though, is the $634 million upgrade to the Livingston Avenue Bridge.

“It's replacing a Civil War-era rail bridge," Morrissey explained. "Not only is it going to enhance upstate rail service, but it's also going to enhance current connectivity between the cities of Albany and Rensselaer.”

It includes a shared-use path for pedestrians and bicyclists. Completion is slated for 2028.

In Syracuse, just last week, the DOT celebrated a milestone in the I-81 Viaduct Project.

“What we're standing on right now is an $18 million piece of that puzzle," said NYSDOT Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez.

The project, costing more than $2 billion, broke ground two years ago.

Currently, a billion dollars in construction is underway. The DOT is getting Syracuse ready for phase two, which will be the removal of the viaduct. The viaduct was constructed generations ago and splits the city in two.

In Buffalo, the controversial Kensington Expressway project has hit a pothole. Last October, a state Supreme Court judge issued a temporary restraining order barring the DOT from beginning any construction on the project. Then in February, the state was ordered to complete an environmental impact statement before moving forward.

  • Motorists can learn about road construction projects happening across New York on the 511NY website's search engine

“We did the studies," said Gov. Kathy Hochul. "We did all of our work, and unfortunately, as happens all too often in Western New York, good ideas die because of lawsuits. People have a difference of opinion from the people who actually represent this community. And therefore we're not going to continue on a path that's going to lead to more delays, more delays, more delays. So we will take a step back.”

The DOT says it remains committed to the project and will reignite public engagement efforts. Looking ahead, Morrissey says the DOT's largest plan in the agency’s history has been greenlit — a more than $34 billion capital plan over five years.

“And the governor's budget also included $800 billion to help fortify this capital plan," he added. 

Morrissey says the DOT operates one of the largest transportation systems in the country, with some of the oldest infrastructure.

Not all of those projects have a price tag in the billions. Morrissey says the Hornell Gateway Project will be launching this year. There’s the pedestrian improvement project in the village of Dundee. And those much-anticipated lift bridge projects in Albion and Brockport should be completed this year.