LIVINGSTON COUNTY – The removal and reconstruction of the bridge that spans the Genesee River between Geneseo and York will cause significant detours for traffic moving through Rte. 63.
Closure and replacement will not begin until 2019, but the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) says that they will be reaching out to local municipalities to assess local impacts and design detours that accommodate disturbances.
“We know we will have to replace the bridge and we know we will have to reach out to the people who use the bridge to manage impact,” said Lori Maher with NYSDOT. “We want to hear what the concerns are over the next few years.”
The Livingston County Planning Department anticipates that Geneseo, York, Leicester, Mount Morris, and Avon will be impacted by the detours. Besides being a critical conduit for commuter traffic in Livingston County, that section of Rte. 63 is also a federal trucking route, which could open the project up to federal funding.
“Obviously the communities in Livingston County want some say in how the DOT does their rerouting,” said Angela Ellis, Planning Director of the Livingston County Planning Department. “The project is still in its earliest stages of designing. Construction will not begin for a few years unless funding comes through as part of the New York State Transportation Improvement Program, or federal funding.”
The bridge is in a severe state of disrepair.
“It’s time. It’s just time for a replacement,” added Ellis. “It’s been on everyone’s list for a long time. It would have been done sooner but the funding wasn’t there.”