Rural Roads, Bridges Need Attention From State
Legislative Column from Assemblyman Ken Blankenbush (R,C,I-Black River)
Where we’re from, we’re no strangers to extreme winter weather. We’ve also seen the toll it and traffic can take on our roads, bridges and culverts. Here in the North Country and the Mohawk Valley, there are thousands of miles of rural roads and bridges for which our local highway departments are responsible with their limited resources.
There is a constant balancing act going on to keep up with the demands of heavily-traveled roadways and the needs of residents who rely on low-volume roads and bridges as their source of connection with their communities. It is, indeed, a great responsibility.
New York State, however, could and should do more. Often, the priorities of our state are skewed by downstate politicians, who at times forget there is a whole other world north of New York City. It seems as if they forget there are communities and areas of this state that need just as much attention and renewal as the big cities. Maybe neglect is too harsh a word, but I have always thought that reining in wasteful spending could transform our communities.
Over the last two years, I’ve helped to successfully increase investment in our Consolidated Highway Improvement Program (CHIPs) by $115 million, which helps our local highway departments repair crumbling roadways and bridges, especially to help fix the potholes after last year’s intense winter.
The state has $3.8 billion worth of additional money that is readily available that should be wisely used to update our upstate roadways. I urge state leaders to be careful on how they use those funds and consider the needs in our struggling communities.
Going forward, I would like to continue to increase focus and investment on upstate roads and bridges. I’d like to more aggressively seek investments to update bridges, especially those in the southern part of my district that span the canal, to ensure they are not only safe, but will not contribute to flooding issues like those we saw a few years ago.
Infrastructure is what keeps a community’s people and economy thriving. During the upcoming legislative session, I will continue to work with my legislative colleagues to ensure upstate New York gets more of its fair share of investment.
If you have ideas about how the state could help our local communities, please share them with me by emailing