Worries about extra traffic on Old Liverpool Road
LIVERPOOL -- A ban on all commercial traffic on the Onondaga Lake Parkway could happen as soon as this summer, according to the State Department of Transportation in Albany.
DOT spokesperson Jennifer Post tells us that plans for the proposal are being put together now, and that they will include a chance for public input. This, as a resident of Old Liverpool Road, which parallels the Parkway, is expressing her concern about extra traffic in her front yard.
Kathleen Baker says she doesn't mind the traffic now (13,300 to 16,900 vehicles daily according to the latest DOT survey), but that she worries about the extra 'heavy' traffic if the change happens. Baker says that when the Parkway is shut down, the extra traffic on Old Liverpool Road is noticeable.
Right now, all tractor trailers are already banned from the Parkway and diverted to Old Liverpool Road to avoid the low railroad bridge, but this proposal would add in all vehicles that carry commercial plates, and estimates are that would add 3,000 vehicles daily to Old Liverpool Road. Right now 23,200 vehicles use the Parkway daily.
It's all in an effort to keep vehicles from hitting the railway bridge.
Baker knows that's a problem, but says diverting traffic to her road will create another big safety issue. She tells us she intends to work against increasing traffic on Old Liverpool Road.
