TOWN OF WALLKILL – As Route 17 is being transformed into I-86, community leaders and officials are hoping a third lane from Harriman to the Monticello area can be added to help with safety and economic development.
“It’s to get people together to support this project,” said Maureen Halahan, president and CEO of the Orange County Partnership, prior to a panel discussion by the ad hoc group “17Forward86” Wednesday at the West Hills Country Club in the Town of Wallkill.
“The panel discussion is really to bring the community together. We have mobilized a very strong team that is forward-looking on making sure that this road gets the third lane and that we continue to support economic development and quality of life in Orange and Sullivan counties and throughout 17Forward86. So this purpose is to spread the word,” she said.
A $5 million engineering study is looking at the feasibility of adding a third lane to the busy highway from Woodbury Commons west into Sullivan County.
“Once that is completed, the corridor will be shovel-ready. And then we’ll need the big funding that comes out of this,” said Halahan.
Legoland, a theme park based on the toy brand, is currently under construction in Goshen, and it scheduled to open July 4th of this year along Route 17, and a third lane would help funnel traffic to the park.
“We virtually have no people who are not for it,” said Halahan. “This is a very important project, and we need the state to focus on this.”
Nancy Proyect, president of the Orange County Citizens Foundation, said upgrades could help with safety, which is compromised by accidents on the speedy corridor.
“It’s not just a third lane, it’s also upgrades to Route 17 for safety,” she said. “The upgrades will make it safer. There have been accidents along Route 17 around Middletown and further up. The upgrades will fix that.”
