A very busy section of Route 7 is getting fresh pavement, but the two-month project will be completed at night to avoid most of the traffic.
The state Department of Transportation will begin milling and repaving Sept. 6, starting at the intersection with St. David’s Lane. The project extends into Colonie, ending at the intersection with Mill Road, just past Albany Shaker Road.
Workers are already on the street, fixing drainage and curbs. That’s the work that will have the most impact in the long run, Niskayuna Town Supervisor Joe Landry said.
“It’s good that they’re improving the infrastructure. They will probably correct a lot of minor problems before they become big ones,” he said. “As roads age and things sink, drainage [work] is important — especially if drainage has heaved a little bit, is a little high.”
All that work will be done during the day. Once the paving starts, DOT will shut down lanes of the road at night.
The work will be noisy — residents should expect noise near them for two nights; one night for milling and one for paving, DOT officials said. But they consider that preferable to causing backups on the heavily used road during rush hour. DOT traffic counts found 32,170 cars pass Albany Shaker Road on Route 7 every day, while 24,600 pass Rosendale Road. Most of those cars are on commuter schedules, traveling during early morning and late afternoon.
Of course, it’s still busy at night.
“But it’s not as busy at night as it is during the daytime,” Landry said.
The main paving work is expected to be complete by Sept. 30.
But the four biggest intersections along the route will be milled and repaved at the end of the project, in October. The intersections with Pearse Road, Rosendale Road and Albany Shaker Road are scheduled to be milled Oct. 3 to 6 and then paved Oct. 10 through 13.
The entire road will be restriped from Oct. 17 to Nov. 10, and nighttime work will end as soon as the painting is done.
All traffic signs along Route 7 will also be replaced. The entire project should be complete by November.
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