Residents got a prelude of the revised Route 17 Complete Streets plan through Sloatsburg during a recent February Village Board meeting. Whatever expectations are, the roadway equation appears simple enough. For Sloatsburgers to enjoy a modicum of main street and improved roadway safety that includes slower traffic through the village center, the community must expect some traffic backup during peak traffic hours.

The New York State Department of Transportation Region 8 team and its preferred engineering firm, Creighton Manning of Albany, NY, provided the board and standing room only audience with a brief summary of a modified Complete Streets plan that the team believed might meet the complex needs of the Sloatsburg community.

The NYSDOT also announced that the next Public Informational meeting to officially present the plan in detail is scheduled for Tuesday, March 13, at 7 p.m. at the Sloatsburg Village Fire House. Residents are encouraged to attend the meeting.

Sandra Jobson, NYSDOT Regional Planning & Program Manager for the Hudson Valley, again took the lead in discussing how the revised plan, which she called a hybrid Road Diet plan, better suits the needs of Sloatsburg residents and the many daily commuters who use Route 17. Jobson, who stressed the extraordinary amount of time and work the DOT has put in to make the right plan for the village, was enthusiastic about the hybrid plan, stating that she was excited for Sloatsburg.

Click the image to make larger. NYSDOT reasons why the plan altered a Road Diet and moved to a hybrid option which provides the community with a Road Diet option in the north and south of the village.

Although the roadway through the village center won’t narrow, Route 17 at the Sloatsburg Public Library would contain a crosswalk area Jobson described as a “boulevard,” which would house a modified, signalized traffic light and dedicated turn lane that would allow for safe pedestrian crossing of the road.

Jobson stressed to those present that the plan has flexibility in both moving traffic through the village’s central district while providing “Main Street” features the community voiced support for during public workshops in 2017. Jobson also said that the revised plan allows for a Road Diet in North Sloatsburg beyond the Seven Lakes Drive traffic light and in South Sloatsburg beyond Eagle Valley Road.

The issue of a Road Diet, or narrowing of Route 17, and how that might look will ultimately be decided by the community, Jobson said.

Albany, NY, design and engineering firm Creighton Manning were guests of the NYSDPT Region 8. The firm was specially selected to work on the Complete Street plan in Sloatsburg and to help develop a hybrid option that might satisfy the village’s traffic safety and calming needs.

The Complete Street plan has a total $4 million budget and will involve a complete re-paving of Route 17 through Sloatsburg, improved sidewalks, curbs and crosswalks, as well as other roadway improvements and features.

NYDOT design and engineering firm Creighton Manning of Albany is a highly-regarded multi-disciplinary firm that was brought aboard by the DOT as Road Diet specialist. The firm then updated and evaluated traffic data through Sloatsburg to help come up the hybrid plan.

The Over Under Traffic Numbers
The national traffic flow cut-off for an effective municipal road diet were cited by NYSDOT at 20,000 vehicle per day rule. Any more traffic than that number would begin to counter-act the road diet option. Sloatsburg traffic was determined to be some 24,000 cars flowing through in per day in total during peak times, though some 6,000 to 7,000 of those vehicle are lost at the Seven Lakes Drive turn off — meaning those cars are either turning on/off at Seven Lakes Drive.

Village of Sloatsburg Mayor Carl Wright reminded residents that the NYSDOT project in Sloatsburg is a once in a lifetime opportunity to vastly improve the roadway through the village.

The Tuesday, March 13 informational meeting will present the hybrid plan to Sloatsburgers and encourage input that should make the plan the best possible option for Sloatsburg.

“Please be patient,” Jobson said repeatedly, saying that it’s important to get things right for the good of Sloatsburg.