Paving Starts on $47 Million Route 17 Project in Tioga County

A smooth new surface is being applied to a rough old section of the Route 17 expressway west of Vestal.

Work on the $47 million project began in April. A six-mile section of the highway's westbound lanes have been closed for the first phase of the resurfacing and repair job.

Two-way traffic travels in the normal eastbound lanes of Route 17 during a Tioga County reconstruction project. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

According to a New York State Department of Transportation spokesperson, the planned work between Owego and Apalachin is on schedule.

In an email to WNBF News, the spokesperson said: "This week crews are starting to put the first layer of pavement on the westbound lanes."

Repaving operations on the westbound lanes of Route 17 in Apalachin on June 18, 2024. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

The email also advised that "guiderails on the eastbound lanes will need to be repaired" but that work has yet to be scheduled.

In addition to the repaving, two bridges that carry expressway traffic over Apalachin Creek will be rehabilitated as part of the project.

A temporary on-ramp to Route 17 westbound in Apalachin on June 18, 2024. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

Crashes in the work area have occasionally caused traffic backups on Route 17 in recent weeks.

An overnight closure for emergency guiderail repair work affected eastbound traffic for several hours last month.

Detours and crossovers in the construction zone will be removed during the winter to restore normal traffic patterns until work on the project resumes next spring.

The Route 17 reconstruction project starts just east of Owego. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.

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Source: Paving Starts on $47 Million Route 17 Project in Tioga County