SERINO MAKES MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT ON PUDDING STREET

SERINO MAKES MAJOR ANNOUNCEMENT ON PUDDING STREET

ALBANY, NY—State Senator Sue Serino (R, C, I—Hyde Park) joined with local residents and community leaders in Putnam County today to announce that she successfully secured the funding needed to get the Pudding Street Overpass project off the ground.

“Quite frankly, every time I read about yet another accident at Pudding Street, it infuriates me. Three hundred children cross this road every school day. That’s 300 young lives on the line each and every day.

Two decades in the making, this project represents bureaucracy at its worst. The community has rallied around this issue like no other and it is time to give them what they need to ensure the safety of their residents.

I have met with countless concerned residents and local leaders and I have even appealed personally to the Department of Transportation’s Commissioner. When I met with the Director of DOT’s Region 8, I was told that this project is a priority, but he noted that they simply did not have the money to fund the project. I was told that if the money was put on the table, this project would become reality.

I have been pushing throughout the budget process to ensure that the money was there and I am proud to announce that the Senate was able to secure $27.1 billion to improve our roads and bridges.

Of that money, $1 billion was added in the final stages of the negotiations to ensure that Pudding Street would make the cut. Without that funding, Pudding Street wouldn’t even have been on the list. But I was able to ensure that $24.7 million is being dedicated to complete this project. Securing this funding is a major victory for this project.

I delivered on my end.

The money is there, now it’s up to DOT to ensure that the project doesn’t languish on the list.

Right now, it’s my understanding that the DOT has put the project on the list, however it’s not slated to start until 2019-2020. Frankly, I think we can all agree that this project is long overdue and should receive immediate priority attention.

I understand that the project has its challenges, but I will do whatever is necessary to help DOT move this project along. The ball is in their court now and I am fully committed to ensuring that they see this through.”

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