Hochul Points Out 'Significant' Improvements To LI's Roads, Bridges

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“We are steadfast in our determination to give New Yorkers the modern, dependable and resilient transportation network they deserve, and in 2024 we made remarkable progress toward achieving that goal,” Hochul said. “These enhancements to our roads and bridges will improve mobility for motorists, pedestrians and cyclists alike, and help ensure that people and goods continue to get where they need to go, safely and efficiently.”

It’s not the first time Hochul has pledged to tackle Long Island’s ravaged roadways: In 2022, it was good news for Long Islanders who’d had enough of hair-raising, pothole plagued commutes on area roadways as Hochul announced a $157 million investment in pavement renewal projects islandwide.

A total of 480 lanes of state highways at that time were slated to be resurfaced, including key sections of the Long Island Expressway, the Southern State Parkway, and the Meadowbrook State Parkway. The projects, Hochul, said, were part of her commitment to restoring New York’s roads and bridges, which includes her $1 billion “Operation Pave Our Potholes” program, included as part of the $32.8 billion, five-year capital plan in that year’s state budget.

“Long Island has some of the busiest highways in the United States and the investments we are making today will help ensure smoother travel and fewer hassles for the tens of thousands of commuters who use these vital traffic arteries,” Hochul said. “With the adoption of this historic capital plan, we will give communities the infrastructure they need to unleash their full potential, enhancing connectivity, restoring essential roads and bridges, and correcting injustices of the past.”

Highways being renewed that year included a section of the Long Island Expressway in western and central Suffolk County. Crews anticipate renewing 287 lane miles between the Nassau/Suffolk border and State Route 112, or Exit 64, Hochul said.

The $80.1 million project included the three main travel lanes, the high-occupancy vehicle, or HOV, lane, shoulders, and 62 on and off ramps. An average of 152,000 vehicles travel in that area daily, Hochul said.

The LIE provides connections to nearly every major highway in the region and is vital to Long Island’s economy for commuters, tourists and the flow of goods, Hochul said.

The Meadowbrook State Parkway, considered a gateway to Jones Beach, was also restored from Merrick Road southward to Ocean Parkway in the Town of Hempstead, Hochul said.

A $23.9 million pavement renewal project was also commenced on a 63-lane-mile stretch of the Southern State Parkway between Exit 20, or Grand Avenue/Baldwin Road, and State Route 110 at the Nassau/Suffolk border, Hochul said.

The project built on a prior year’s resurfacing project that stretched between the Cross Island Parkway at the Queens/Nassau County border and Exit 20, Hochul said.

The Southern State Parkway is among the most heavily traveled roads on Long Island with an average of approximately 200,000 vehicles daily, Hochul said.

Also planned for the Southern State Parkway was the restoration of 11 lane miles between State Route 231 and the Sagtikos State Parkway in the Towns of Babylon and Islip; and concrete repairs on 55 entrance and exit ramps in Nassau and Suffolk Counties, Hochul said.

Lawmakers spoke out on the news. “After years of neglect and decay, our roadways are now at their breaking point, and Long Islanders are fed up with paying for constant and costly vehicle repairs,” said New York State Assemblymember Fred Thiele at the time. “This long overdue funding will go a long way towards restoring our roads to the condition we deserve and expect.”

The pothole problem has grown in past years, according to motorists, elected officials, and automobile repair shops alike.

The issue is so pervasive that Hochul, at a Long Island Association “State of the Region” breakfast in the past, addressed Long Island’s potholes directly, specifically those found on the Long Island Expressway.

“I have a personal experience with every single pothole, especially on the LIE,” Hochul said, mentioning that she had been sitting in a tire repair shop recently because of a blowout that cost about $500.

“We’re coming after the potholes,” she said. “Enough is enough.”

Hochul said New Yorkers spend about $632 a year because of road damage done to their vehicles.

“Let’s just come at this with a vengeance. We are going to go from ‘Potholes to Not-Holes,'” Hochul said, adding that she was putting $1 billion behind the effort to pave roadways statewide.

Patch spoke to the New York State Department of Transportation about the plethora of potholes popping up across Long Island.

According to the NYSDOT, potholes are formed primarily due to infiltration of water into pavements through cracks in the surface. Cold weather causes the water to freeze, creating a bulge in the pavement. When the temperature warms above freezing, the pavement surface returns to its original level. Subsequent freeze-thaw cycles weaken the pavement material and a pothole forms. The process repeats itself during subsequent freeze-thaw cycles and potholes become worse and more numerous. Heavy traffic also contributes to the creation of new potholes and the worsening of existing ones.

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