Route 104 Corridor Trail Feasibility Study - Genesee Transportation ...

INTRODUCTION
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Route 104 Corridor Trail Feasibility Study
This report summarizes the analysis and preliminary design studies of the Route 104 Corridor Trail Feasibility Study.
The Genesee Transportation Council (GTC) contracted with edr to conduct site analysis, assess feasibility, and
produce concept-level planning and design for a multi-use trail in the Route 104 Corridor in the Towns of Webster,
Ontario, Williamson, and Sodus in Monroe and Wayne Counties, New York. Preliminary cost estimates and
guidelines for the design and implementation of the trail were prepared.
Financial assistance for the preparation of this report was provided by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA)
through GTC‘s Unified Planning Work Program (UPWP). The Genesee Transportation Council is solely responsible
for its content and the views and opinions expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the official views or policy of
the U.S. Department of Transportation. The Genesee Transportation Council assures that no person shall, on the
grounds of race, color, national origin, disability, age, gender, or income status, be excluded from participation in, be
denied the benefits of, or be otherwise subjected to discrimination under any program or activity. GTC further assures
every effort will be made to ensure nondiscrimination in all of its programs and activities, whether those programs
and activities are federally funded or not.
A. BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE OF STUDY
The purpose of the Route 104 Corridor Trail Feasibility Study is to assess the feasibility of developing a 17-mile
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-compliant multi-use trail within the highway right-of-way and/or parallel with
Route 104. Please see Figure 1 for an illustration of the project location, and Appendix A for existing conditions
photographs.
1. New York State Route 104
New York State Route 104 (Route 104) is a 182.41-
mile long east–west state highway in Upstate New York
(NYSDOT, 2009). The roadway spans six counties and
enters the vicinity of four cities—Niagara Falls,
Lockport, Rochester, and Oswego—as it follows a route
that roughly parallels the southern shoreline of Lake
Ontario, along a ridge of the old shoreline of Glacial
Lake Iroquois (Wikipedia, 2011; Tesmer, 1981). The
western terminus of Route 104 is at an intersection with
NYS Route 384 in Niagara Falls, Niagara County, while
its eastern terminus is at a junction with NYS Route 13
in the town of Williamstown, Oswego County. The
portion of Route 104 between Rochester and the
Village of Webster east of the city is a limited-access
highway, and from Webster to Oswego, Route 104 is a
super two highway (Ibid).
Route 104 and County Line Road Intersection, Webster & Ontario
Photo Credit: Microsoft Virtual Earth/Pictometry
In the Town of Webster, the expressway loosely parallels the southern edge of the Xerox campus to an exit with Salt
Road, where it downgrades to a divided highway as it continues east to Basket Road and the Monroe–Wayne County
line, partially delimited by NYS Route 404. In this area, Ridge Road and Route 104 split, and Ridge becomes a
separate roadway just to the south. Route 104 continues east through Ontario, where it meets the northern terminus
of NYS Route 350 in Ontario Center.
Prepared for GTC and the Towns of Ontario, Sodus, Webster, and Williamson, NY Page 10