Say goodbye to some of the traffic jams and scary highway mergers on the way to and from basketball and football games on Interstate 81 in Syracuse.
Even before the state tears down the I-81 overpass that drops drivers at Harrison and Adams streets, a new exit will be built on Interstate 690 to give drivers another option to get downtown.
It will forever change the way thousands of people get to work, school, hospital appointments and dome games. The new exit will also open up for development a neighborhood defined by vacant land and parking lots.
The project will be the first ground to break on the $2.25 billion redo of I-81. It’s been overlooked in the bigger conversation about how to move traffic to street level through Syracuse’s north and south corridor.
The state Department of Transportation plans to build a new interchange to get on and off I-690 where the highway goes over South Crouse and Irving avenues. Those streets are east of downtown, not far from the Teall Avenue exit.
The state hopes to have contracts in place next year and finish building the interchange in 2025. The goal is to have the exits ready to go before the state starts ripping out the elevated I-81 through downtown, according to Mark Frechette, the I-81 project manager.
For a short time, drivers will have a choice. They can continue to use the Harrison and Adams street exits from the elevated I-81 or use the new exits from I-690. That could make it less crowded on the overpass — one of the most dangerous in Syracuse. Accidents happen on the stretch of I-81 through Syracuse 2 to 3 times more often than on similar roads across New York.
Tearing down the viaduct and rebuilding Almond Street is the last stage of the six-year project. It is scheduled to happen between 2026 and 2028.
The new I-690 exit will give drivers direct access to the university and the hospitals during construction.
And when all is done, it will continue to draw street-level traffic away from the new Almond Street corridor.
>>See maps of construction in the suburbs
The state transportation department provided this rendering of the new I-690 interchange to be built at Crouse and Irving avenues.
The new ramps will work like this:
Drivers headed westbound on I-690 will exit at Crouse Avenue, travel under the highway and continue south on Crouse Avenue or turn left or right on one of the cross streets, Water Street, Erie Boulevard, Fayette or Genesee streets.
Drivers who want to go east on I-690 will use the new ramp on Crouse Avenue.
Drivers headed eastbound into the city will get off I-690 at the new Irving Avenue exit.
Drivers who want to continue west on I-690 will get on the highway at Irving Avenue.
The state transportation department provided this rendering of the new I-690 interchange to be built at Crouse and Irving avenues. This is the view from the highway toward Syracuse University.
Right now, Irving and Crouse avenues have little traffic.
Only a few hundred people use Crouse Avenue in the peak morning and evening rush, defined as the hours starting at 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., according to state records. Crouse Avenue is a surface street shortcut for people who live east of the city to drive parallel to the highway toward downtown or to the university or hospitals.
Right now, Irving Avenue does not go as far north as the highway. It runs from Syracuse University past the Crouse and SUNY Upstate Hospital emergency rooms and ends at Fayette Street.
The state will build a new stretch of Irving Avenue to bring drivers all the way to the new ramps at the highway. The new Irving Avenue blocks will go north from Strong Hearts restaurant to the highway.
The state reports traffic volumes at the 7:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. hours at each intersection.
As an example, state models predict traffic will increase on Crouse Avenue at Erie Boulevard from today’s 300 drivers at peak morning and evening rush to about 800 in 2026, after the new interchange opens.
The new exits open possibilities for development along entire city blocks of vacant land. The land along Crouse Avenue from the Art Store, at the corner of Erie Boulevard, to the Luna Cat Café, at East Fayette Street, is vacant. The site of a demolished public housing project, the 8-acre site is caught up in a legal battle between SUNY Upstate and Cor Development, who were supposed to be partners in redeveloping the land.
One casualty of the construction is Tobin’s Refinishing & Real Wood Furniture, which has been on Canal Street for at least three decades. The building will be torn down to make way for a ramp.
Owner Christopher Stefanovich, who leases the property, said he expects to be out of the building by July. He said he has already lined up new space on Pickard Drive, in DeWitt. Tobin’s is one of only four buildings to be demolished for new highway construction.
Another big change for drivers is the eventual closure of the current entrance and exit ramps at McBride and Townsend streets. Those are used by drivers in the eastern suburbs to commute to downtown streets.
Read more about I-81:
What can Syracuse learn from Rochester about rebuilding a neighborhood split by a highway? 7 tips
How much are taxpayers spending to keep I-81 in Syracuse safe before NY tears it down?
I-81: Upstate NY’s biggest highway project is about to start, but maybe not where you think
Syracuse Mayor Walsh to state: I-81 community grid should feel like city streets, not a highway
Syracuse embarks on $800 million plan to end public housing as we know it
A clear direction for the new I-81 in Syracuse: After 15 years of talk, we know where we’re going
Interstate 81: Read NY’s complete final plan for removing the elevated highway in Syracuse
Do you have a question about how the I-81 project will change your commute or the neighborhoods where you live and work? Send in your question and it could become the subject of a news story. Contact Michelle Breidenbach | mbreidenbach@syracuse.com | 315-470-3186.