The New York State Department of Transportation will soon reach a milestone in the Interstate 81 project in central New York.
The $2.25 billion project to tear down the aging elevated viaduct in downtown Syracuse and create a new high-speed traffic pattern is split into eight different contracts, distributed over two phases that will take about five years to complete. State Department of Transportation Regional Director David Smith said the state has already awarded contracts 1-4, and is weeks away from awarding the fifth contract.
"Once that's [Contract 5] awarded in an in construction, we will have all of the Phase One projects in construction,” Smith said. “So, as a milestone, that's pretty significant to realize that all five Phase One contracts will be in construction and then we're gearing up for Phase Two beyond that."
Contract five focuses on I-81 just south of city of Syracuse, where a roundabout is meant to start slowing traffic moving from 81 to a community grid configuration. Smith said all the contracts that have started are moving well, and he notes there have been no significant traffic disruptions caused by the massive project that touches all points around the city.
“We really haven't seen significant delays on 81 or even on 481, which would cause people to need to take significant detours, other than what we have in place for closed ramps and whatnot,” he said. “But generally speaking, things are going very well from a delay standpoint."
The entire project is expected to be finished in 2028. For information about specific detours caused by the project, visit the I-81 project page.
