UC Announces $1.02 Million NYSDOT Safety Award for Road Improvements
Published on July 02, 2026
KINGSTON, NY - Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger today announced that the New York State Department of Transportation (DOT) has awarded $1.02 million to the Towns of New Paltz and Marbletown for road safety improvements to Mountain Rest Road and Mohonk Road — two of the County’s most crash‑prone corridors. The funds will be used to install Centerline Audible Roadway Delineators (CARDs, also known as “rumble strips”), as well as high‑friction pavement treatments and upgraded curve warning signs.
The award is part of Governor Kathy Hochul’s statewide investment of more than $43 million to help local governments reduce roadway departure crashes under NYSDOT’s “Safe System” approach toward zero deaths on New York highways.
Mountain Rest Road in New Paltz and Mohonk Road in Marbletown were chosen because they have long been identified as high‑risk locations for crashes in which vehicles cross an edge line, center line, or leave the roadway entirely — often resulting in serious or fatal injuries.
Between 2010 and 2025, Mountain Rest Road saw 44 roadway‑departure crashes resulting in injuries. Seventy percent of those crashes involved collisions with guiderails, trees, or fixed objects. Many of these incidents occurred in clusters around the curves near the intersection with Butterville and Canaan Roads, where drivers are more likely to lose control or drift out of their lane.
Mohonk Road shows a similar pattern. During the same analysis period, 32 crashes resulted in injuries, with 18 occurring on the winding curves between Mountain Rest and Clove Roads. Nineteen of those crashes involved collisions with guiderails, utility poles, or other fixed objects, underscoring the need for targeted safety improvements along this stretch.
The selected countermeasures — CARDs, friction treatment, and improved signage — are proven safety interventions that significantly reduce roadway departure crashes. CARDs (rumble strips) provide audible and vibratory feedback to drivers who drift across the centerline, while friction treatments improve tire grip on curves, especially in wet conditions.
The Ulster County Transportation Council (UCTC) and Ulster County Department of Public Works Commissioner Brendan Masterson partnered in applying for the funding, which was made available through the Federal Highway Administration’s Highway Safety Improvement Program to support engineering countermeasures that reduce roadway‑departure crashes and lessen the severity of those that occur.
“These are highly traveled roads by both cyclists and motorists, as well as major corridors for out-of-town visitors to the Shawangunk Ridge, and these improvements will greatly enhance road safety and protect lives,” said Ulster County Executive Jen Metzger. “I want to thank Governor Hochul and NYS DOT for recognizing the urgency of addressing these safety issues, and I’m deeply appreciative of the Ulster County Transportation Council and the Department of Public Works for navigating a very complex application process to secure this funding.”
“These two corridors have long‑documented crash histories, and this award allows us to implement countermeasures that directly address the causes of those crashes,” said Brian Slack, UCTC Transportation Program Manager. “Roadway departures — especially on curves — are a major source of serious injuries in Ulster County, and CARDs, friction treatment, and improved signage are exactly the right tools for these locations. We’re very happy to capture federal aid and ensure it’s invested locally, especially given how competitive this funding is statewide. We appreciate NYSDOT’s support and are proud to work with DPW Commissioner Masterson to bring this critical safety investment to Ulster County.”