Rt. 17 looking west, near Woodbury
(file)
GOSHEN – Adding a third lane in each direction on Route 17, the future Interstate 86, between Harriman and Monticello, has been discussed for years, but there has been no movement on it.
Now, with Casino World Catskills to open in the early spring of next year and the potential of Legoland being constructed in the Goshen area, there are concerns about the added traffic on the highway that gets congested during weekday rush hours and on weekends.
Orange County Executive Steven Neuhaus said he would like to see planning for that third lane to move forward.
“If you look at the project that is out to bid from the state DOT right now from Harriman, it has pockets of improvements along 17, that I think will pave the way to have a third lane in there,” Neuhaus said. “And when you want the casino, which is the casino in Sullivan County that is going to be the biggest of its kind in New York State; we want it to be successful. New York State needs it to be successful. So they cannot have people have bad experiences when they come here. If you have a bad experience, you are not going to come back.”
The entire Woodbury road network including the Thruway, Route 17 and local roads, will be restructured in a multi-million dollar state project in the new year.
