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$4M Project Aims to Improve Traffic on Staten Island Roads

By Nicholas Rizzi | September 30, 2016 2:54pm | Updated on October 3, 2016 8:29am
 The state Department of Transportation announced a $4 million project aimed to improve traffic safety on the West Shore Expressway and Korean War Veterans Parkway, including a concrete barrier to separate the two as they merge on the way toward the Outerbridge Crossing.
The state Department of Transportation announced a $4 million project aimed to improve traffic safety on the West Shore Expressway and Korean War Veterans Parkway, including a concrete barrier to separate the two as they merge on the way toward the Outerbridge Crossing.
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New York State Department of Transportation

STATEN ISLAND — A $4 million plan is aiming to improve traffic flow on two Staten Island roads.

The Korean War Veterans Parkway and the West Shore Expressway will benefit from the state cash.

The state Department of Transportation, which announced the improvements Thursday, will focus on the the section where the highways merge heading to the Outerbridge Crossing.

"As part of Governor Cuomo’s historic investment in infrastructure, the New York State Department of Transportation is making improvements to an interchange that does not adequately address the needs of today’s traffic and pedestrian demands," state DOT Commissioner Matthew Driscoll said in a statement.

"An efficient operation at the KWVP/WSE interchange is vital for the approximately 117,000 motorists who use it each day."

As part of the project, the state will separate traffic on the Korean War Veterans Parkway heading westbound to the bridge from the merging West Shore Expressway by installing a concrete barrier between the lanes, the DOT said.

The barriers will prevent Korean War Veterans drivers from crossing several lanes of traffic to access Exit 1 to Arthur Kill Road, forcing them to use the Maguire Ave. exit instead.

The improvements also include 3,000 feet of new sidewalks along the Korean War Veteran service road near Bloomingdale Park, something elected officials have fought for years to get.

"After many years of frustration resulting from the inaction and lack of a sense of urgency on the part of city agencies on the sidewalk issue, we turned to the State to ask for help, and to their credit they responded in a big way," Borough President James Oddo said in a statement.

"They have injected common sense into a matter that was drowning in ‘agency speak’ and warped by an agenda that, despite rhetoric of pedestrian safety, did not make the well-being of Staten Islanders paramount."

The new sidewalk, which will be ADA-complaint, will be installed on Drumgoole West between Bloomingdale Road and Lenevar Avenue and allow easier access to express bus stops at Bloomingdale Road, the state DOT said.

The project also includes pavement repairs, highway striping, and the installation of new curbs and guiderails.

The state expects construction to start in the late spring of 2017.