Ryan requests lead role for Buffalo in Scajaquada corridor project

Submitted by the Office of City of Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan

Mayor Sean Ryan has sent a letter to the New York State Department of Transportation requesting the City of Buffalo be designated as the lead agency for the next phase of the Scajaquada corridor project.

In his letter to NYSDOT Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez, Ryan also requested that $56 million be included in the NYSDOT Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) to advance the project through environmental review and design.

The Scajaquada corridor was the subject of the Greater Buffalo Niagara Regional Transportation Council’s “Region Central” planning process, which concluded in 2023 after extensive community engagement. The process produced a preferred vision for the future of the corridor that received broad support from the surrounding community.

Ryan said Buffalo must play a leading role in shaping major infrastructure projects that will affect the city’s neighborhoods, parks and transportation network for generations.

“This is a major transportation project that will shape Buffalo for the next generation, so the City of Buffalo needs to be in the driver’s seat,” Ryan said. “For too long, city hall has taken a back seat while decisions about our infrastructure were made by others. The Region Central process produced a thoughtful, community-supported vision for this corridor, and now it’s time to move that work forward. By coordinating this effort with the Kensington project, we can deliver a better outcome for the surrounding neighborhoods and everyone who interacts with these corridors.”

Ryan’s letter notes the Region Central plan represents a rare consensus after more than two decades of stalled planning around the Scajaquada Expressway. Advancing the project would allow Buffalo to coordinate improvements with the ongoing planning process for the Route 33 corridor and ensure the two connected projects are designed in a way that works for the city.