Roundabout Construction To Begin May 27

By MONICA CALZOLARI
ONEONTA

Four representatives of the New York State Department of Transportation briefed the City of Oneonta Common Council and about 100 members of the public recently on the $4 million construction plan starting on May 27 to improve the safety of the intersection of Main Street and James F. Lettis Highway by turning it into a roundabout.

NYSDOT oversees a state and local highway system that encompasses more than 113,000 miles and more than 17,400 bridges, according to a brochure posted on its website.

Oneonta Mayor Mark Drnek made it clear to the audience worried about the roundabout’s effect on the summer tourist season that “this is not a city project. This is a DOT project.”

“One hundred percent of the cost of the roundabout will be paid for by DOT,” City Administrator Greg Mattice said.

DOT Regional Director Andy Stiles introduced himself and his team on Tuesday, April 15. His assistant, Lonni Rawson, gave the council and the public a 10-slide presentation full of photos explaining this two-phased project.

Councilman Len Carson announced that he was “getting a lot of negative feedback from downtown businesses” about the timing of the construction.

Construction projects are subject to favorable weather. Unfortunately, spring, summer and fall are the best time for construction projects and vacationers in upstate New York.

Work on this project has already started, with tree removal and other site preparation activities. Drainage installation and lane closures will begin on Tuesday, May 27. Major construction is set to get underway in early June. Traffic detours and closure of certain roads can be expected, officials said. The project will last all summer, with completion anticipated in November 2025.   

DOT Public Information Officer Daniel Scharfenberger answered questions from Carson and others.  

“Google Maps and Waze will be notified of road closures,” Scharfenberger said.

Rawson said that the detour will have signs at every turn. Most signs will say “Detour to NY State 7.” There will be additional signs on Interstate 88.

Roundabouts are Safer

Accident criteria has been used to determine the need for a safer intersection. Elayne Mosher Campoli asked, “Can you speak to the safety of a roundabout?”  

Rawson said that four-way intersections have “32 conflict points. The majority of vehicles travel at slower speed inside roundabouts, and conflict points are reduced to eight points.”

DOT provided two handouts at the meeting on April 15, including a brochure which stated that “roundabouts are safer intersections that result in fewer severe crashes requiring emergency responses.”

It also stated that “roundabouts are also a very efficient type of intersection that do not have the same stop and go conditions as regular intersections.”

Roundabouts are designed to keep people moving, but at reduced speeds. Therefore, injury risk is greatly reduced. Safety outweighs the cost of the temporary inconvenience of construction. Tourists and locals alike will be more likely to avoid accidents in the future, DOT contends.

“Unlike traffic signals, roundabouts don’t depend on electricity to function, so they are not susceptible to power outages,” the brochure states.    

Phase One

Throughout construction, “Access to the Post Office will remain open,” Rawson said, including the parking lot behind the Post Office.

During Phase One of this major construction project, most of the intersection of Main Street (Route 7), Lettis Highway (Route 23) and Maple Street will be closed to all traffic. Only the northbound slip ramp leading to the Post Office and A. O. Fox Hospital and the south side slip ramp from Main Street to Lettis Highway will remain open to traffic.

If an emergency vehicle needs to reach Fox Hospital, it will follow the detour and use Center Street to reach its destination.

According to DOT, construction will focus initially on the northern end of the intersection and the interior of the roundabout near this intersection. Access to driveways on Maple Street between Walnut and Main streets will be maintained.

The Pine Street and Main Street intersection will be closed during Phase One. The southern section of Pine Street from Potter Avenue to Main Street will temporarily allow two-way traffic to give residents and businesses access.

Most work will occur between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m., Monday through Saturday. At times, work may continue until 9 p.m. Paving work and pavement line marking may occur between 9 p.m. and 7 a.m.

511NY Travel Advisory will be updated with all road closure information. If a person is trying to reach a business on Main Street in downtown Oneonta and they google that address, they will receive the best route to take to arrive at that location, Scharfenberger said. 

Miller Park and Curtis Park will be closed for three months.

ADA Accessible Taxi service will be available for pedestrians at no cost from four specific locations. The taxi service has not yet determined those locations.

The Town of Oneonta has a Lettis Highway and Southside Project slated for 2026, which dovetails with this DOT Lettis Highway project.