Erie Blvd. to close for completion of new roundabout

PHOTOGRAPHER: Peter R. Barber

The Erie Boulevard round a bout at Nott Street

Schenectady’s busy Erie Boulevard will be closed to all traffic this weekend.

From Friday at 7 p.m. until Monday at 6 a.m. Erie Boulevard will be closed to traffic, weather permitting, to allow construction crews to complete the roundabout at the intersection of Erie Boulevard and Nott Street.

The roundabout only needs a top course of paving and signage before it opens to traffic on Monday morning, according to the city’s Signal Superintendent John Coluccio.

“This weekend closure will allow Rifenburg Construction of Troy to finish this work in a timely manner and with an easier transition for traffic to use the roundabout on Monday morning,” Coluccio said in a press release on Tuesday.

Northbound traffic should use Union Street as a detour with traffic having access on Erie Boulevard to Monroe Street, according to the release.

Southbound traffic will be detoured over Maxon Road Extension to Van Vranken Avenue.

The city is encouraging drivers to follow the signed detours or consider alternate routes during the Erie Boulevard closure.

The roundabout marks the city’s first. It came with a $2.9 million price tag, which was mostly paid by the state and federal governments. The city was responsible for 5 percent of the cost.

The roundabout is expected to mitigate traffic on the heavily traveled road as the Galesi Group develops the Mohawk Harbor site off Erie Boulevard with a casino, housing and office and retail.