The Erie County Department of Public Works Highways’ Division has announced the initial 2019 program of county roads targeted for repairs, including roads in each of the county’s five highway districts, with mill and overlay work designated for several roads that sustained damage over the winter. In 2019 the road repair program will once again be conducted by county-employed Highways Division crews rather than contractors, a cost-saving measure that maximizes efficiency and allows crews to begin working as soon as weather permits, leading to more timely completion of these projects as weather permits.

Erie County Executive Mark C. Poloncarz said, “My administration continues to invest in our infrastructure and address the damage done during this harsh Erie County winter, and we are getting ready to start road work as soon as we are confident that snowplowing is done for the season. Our Public Works crews work hard in all seasons of the year, keeping the roads clear in the winter and keeping them in shape for the summer, and on behalf of all county residents I thank them for their efforts.”

Some of the larger bonded projects planned for 2019 include a $3 million total reconstruction of East & West Road (from Union Road to Leydecker) in the Town of West Seneca, a project that includes new drainage, curbing, and road sections; and a $2.5 million total reconstruction of North & South Main Street in the Village of Angola. The section of road from Eden Evans Center Road to Hardpan Road will be reconstructed with new road sections, drainage and curbing. Another bonded project, totaling $500,000, involves drainage rehabilitation and replacement on Old Lakeshore Road in Evans to address roadway drainage between Big Sister Creek and Hickory.  

Countywide 2019 road work will be spread across all five highway districts:

• ·         In the Harlem District, a $1.2 million mill and overlay project will be conducted on Cleveland Drive in the Town of Cheektowaga, from the NYS Thruway west to the City of Buffalo line. This 1.7 mile project will also include drainage repairs. Elsewhere in the district, a $1.06 million mill and overlay operation will take place on Dingens Street in Cheektowaga from the City of Buffalo line to Harlem Road, a distance of 0.76 miles, and Kensington Avenue in the Town of Amherst will see mill and overlay operations along with a road diet requested by the Town. This $624,000 project will extend from NYS Rte. 5 to Harlem Road, a distance of 1.04 miles that currently carries four lanes of traffic.

Other work upcoming in the Harlem District includes Baseline Road (from Whitehaven to East River), Love Road (from East River to West River), and Bush Road (from East River to West River) in Grand Island, along with  Englewood Road in Tonawanda (from Kenmore Avenue to Highland).

• ·         In the Aurora District, roads scheduled for mill and overlay work include Davis Road (from Jewett-Holmwood to Rte. 20A) in Aurora, Freeman Road (from Rte. 20a to Jewett-Holmwood) and South Freeman Road (from Rte. 240 to Jewett-Holmwood) in Orchard Park. Girdle Road in Aurora (from Jamison to Porterville) and Whitney Road in Holland are also scheduled for work. Additionally, the Four Rod Road Bridge is scheduled for replacement in 2019.

• ·         In the Clarence District, Shisler Road in Clarence (from Main Street to Bergtold), Exchange Street  (from the RR tracks to Clinton) in Alden/Marilla, Goodrich Road (from Tonawanda Creek Road to County Line) in Clarence, Bowen (from the Lancaster Town Line to William Street) and Lake Street in Lancaster are scheduled for work, as is Crittenden Road (from the Thruway Bridge to 5 corners) in Alden and Newstead. The bridge on North Ellicott Creek Road is also scheduled for replacement in 2019.

• ·         In the Hamburg District a $1.5 million reconstruction of Lake Avenue from Rte. 5 to South Park Avenue in Hamburg/Blasdell is planned while a $1.15 million mill and overlay project, with drainage repairs, is slated for Abbott Road in front of New Era Field. The project includes the section of Abbott from Southwestern Blvd. to Big Tree Road and also Abbott Road north to Mile Strip Road in Orchard Park. The district is also planning work on Zimmerman Road (from Shero to Feddick) in Boston and McKinley Parkway (from Clark to Quinby) in Hamburg.  The Hamburg District will also conduct mill and overlay repairs on Old Lakeshore Road between South Creek and Bennett Road in Evans. Additionally, the Hillcroft Road Bridge over Eighteen Mile Creek in the Town of Boston is scheduled to be replaced in 2019.

• ·          Vaughn Road (from Rte. 39 to County Line) in Concord and Middle Road (from Pratham to Rte. 39) in Sardinia in the Concord District are scheduled for work in 2019.

Poloncarz added, “In addition to the millions of dollars being spent on road and bridge repair we are investing in culverts, highway vehicle and equipment replacement, and many other necessary components of a successful infrastructure operation. In fact, in 2019 we plan on spending $40,038,325 on new road and bridge projects, not including and remaining work to be completed from our 2018 road and bridge programs.. Maintaining our roads effectively means planning responsibly for the future while executing projects today and I thank our Department of Public Works and our construction partners for their diligence in getting the job done.”

Including the planned $40,038,325 in road and bridge investments in 2019, and NOT including the Department of Public Works’ Highway Division’s general operating budget, since 2012 the Poloncarz Administration will have invested $259,094,532 – more than a quarter of a billion dollars – in road and bridge projects. When the Highway Division’s general operating budget is included, the Poloncarz Administration has spent nearly a half a billion dollars in total for all road, bridge and other work performed by the Highway Division.

    For more information:

    On the Erie County Department of Public works, visit http://www2.erie.gov/dpw/

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