New York State Route 49

NY 49 begins at an intersection with NY 3 in Volney. The route heads eastward, intersecting with NY 264 just outside Pennellville. The route crosses some local and county roads before entering Central Square, where it intersects with U.S. Route 11 (US 11) in the village center. It is not long after that Route 49 meets I-81 at exit 32. Route 49 leaves Central Square and heads southeast toward both Constantia and the Oneida Lake shoreline.[4]

NY 49 eastbound in Central Square

East of the hamlet of Constantia, the highway begins to parallel the north shore of Oneida Lake. As the lakeside roadway, NY 49 provides access to both Bernhards Bay and Cleveland, two communities situated on the northern edge of the lake, before crossing into Oneida County and intersecting with NY 13 at the northeast corner of Oneida Lake in the town of Vienna. Here, NY 13 joins NY 49, overlapping the route to the hamlet of Vienna. While NY 13 heads north toward Camden, NY 49 continues eastward, loosely paralleling Fish Creek and the Erie Canal as it heads through rural Oneida County.[4]

Midway between the hamlet of Vienna and downtown Rome, NY 49 crosses over Fish Creek and enters the westernmost portion of Rome. Unlike eastern Rome, home to the downtown district, western Rome is largely rural and undeveloped, as evidenced by the Rome Sand Plains located along the northern edge of NY 49. After 2.5 miles (4.0 km) of rural surroundings, the route passes out of Rome and into Verona upon traversing Wood Creek. The road continues south to the community of New London, where it intersects and joins NY 46 on the north bank of the Erie Canal.[4]

Routes 49 and 46 head to the northeast, separating from the canal as it reenters Rome. Northwest of downtown, the routes are joined by NY 69 as they enter downtown on Erie Boulevard. At Black River Boulevard, Route 46 turns off; however, NY 26 turns onto Erie Boulevard, taking the place of NY 46 in the three-route concurrency. Together, Routes 26, 49 and 69 head south to a directional T interchange with NY 365, the first exit on the Utica–Rome Expressway. While NY 26 leaves to the west, NY 49 and NY 69 head east, embarking on an overlap with NY 365.[4]

Looking west at the interchange between NY 49 and NY 291 in Marcy

At the first interchange east of the directional T junction, the expressway meets NY 233 as NY 69 exits to follow Rome–Oriskany Road to Utica. NY 49 and NY 365 continue on, turning northward to pass over the Mohawk River, the CSX Transportation Rome yard, and the Erie Canal in quick succession near the eastern edge of downtown Rome. Shortly over passing over the canal, NY 365 exits the expressway as well, leaving only NY 49 on the roadway. As the expressway curves back to the east, it crosses a railroad spur leading to the former Griffiss Air Force Base at-grade, a rare occurrence on limited-access highways. Route 49 then meets NY 825, the vehicular southern entrance to the ex-base, by way of an interchange before leaving the Rome limits.[4]

As the expressway continues southeast through the towns of Floyd and Marcy toward Utica, it parallels both the Erie Canal, located due south of the roadway, and the Mohawk River, situated between the canal and the CSX Transportation mainline. In Marcy, NY 49 has an exit for River Street (NY 922E), a connector between the expressway and Oriskany, and another for NY 291 near the hamlet of Marcy. Farther east, the freeway meets Cavanaugh Road (NY 922A) by way of a parclo interchange.[4]

Just east of Cavanaugh Road, the median of the expressway widens as it heads toward the New York State Thruway (I-90). At the Thruway, the eastbound lanes of NY 49 cross over I-90 while the westbound lanes do not, creating an unusual situation in that its westbound lanes run parallel to the Thruway to the latter's north, with the eastbound lanes to the south. North of downtown Utica, NY 49 encounters Edic Road. The expressway officially enters Utica shortly afterward, where Route 49 terminates at a complex interchange between itself, NY 5, NY 8, NY 12, and I-790. Although NY 49 ends, the expressway continues for an additional 1 mile (1.6 km) to Leland Avenue as NY 5.[4]

On October 11, 2002, a pedestrian bridge meant to connect a residential area to Whitesboro High School, under construction across the expressway in Marcy twisted and collapsed, killing one worker and injuring nine more. [20] A machine was screeding the concrete deck, starting from the north end and moving south. As it reached the midpoint, the bridge suddenly twisted and collapsed onto the expressway beneath. Workers had noted that the bridge had seemed noticeably "bouncy" leading up to the incident. Investigators found that the most likely reason for collapse was lateral-torsional buckling. The under-construction expressway and bridge were not open to the public at the time of collapse.[21]