The Hoosick St. Bridge
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Introduction[edit]
The Hoosick St. Bridge (also known as the Collar City Bridge) is a bridge along NYS Route 7. The bridge carries 8 lanes of traffic over the Hudson River, connecting the city of Troy to Interstate 787 and several towns to the west.
History[edit]
The NYS Department of Public Works (NYSDPW) started planning the Hoosick St. Bridge in 1944 alongside other plans for several arterial roads throughout the Capital Region. The bridge was intended to reroute NYS Route 7 away from the congested downtown area, and instead redirect traffic to Hoosick St. The bridge was officially proposed in 1954 alongside the aforementioned arterial projects, including Troy’s North-South Arterial. However, plans changed in 1956 with the passage of the Federal Aid Highway Act, which provided $24.8 billion ($287 billion in 2024) in aid to be spent on interstate highways, including the Hoosick St. Bridge.
With federal funding available, the original plans for the bridge were modified and proposed again in 1962 at a corridor hearing. The new plans were met with significant opposition from Troy, Watervliet, and Green Island. The major concern was that the proposed interchange between Interstate 787 and the rerouted NYS Route 7 would eliminate nearly half of the Maplewood neighborhood. Other concerns related to the destruction that Troy’s North-South Arterial would cause. This didn’t deter the state, which began to get approvals for construction and acquire land anyways. In 1968, construction began on the interchange.
In the same year, new plans for Troy’s North-South Arterial and the Hoosick St. Bridge were revealed by the NYS Department of Transportation (NYSDOT). This proposal featured a massive interchange onto an 8-lane Hoosick St. Bridge and several ideas for the arterial that sliced through Troy. The proposal was met with very strong backlash, including from a recently-formed design group called TAP, which was formed by Troy locals and RPI students. TAP sought to minimize the impacts of the plans, and proposed an alternative that rerouted the arterial and bridge to minimize the amount of land the state would need to acquire. This resistance effort would help to stall the projects. By 1971, several new federal regulations were passed and Troy leaders announced plans for downtown that TAP and NYSDOT would need to work around.
In 1972, the NYSDOT revealed a new revision of plans for the Hoosick St. Bridge. The massive interchange was shrunk down and the North-South Arterial was scrapped entirely, but the bridge was still 8 lanes large and planned to send its traffic to an unprepared Hoosick St. The plan created some backlash from TAP and Troy locals, but the proposal was sent for federal review regardless. The federal government denied, which stalled the project. The state tried repeatedly to get the project approved with minimal changes proposed by their opposition, but were denied until 1977. This approval by the federal government sparked a lawsuit against the NYSDOT, which was swiftly concluded in favor of the DOT following the collapse of the Green Island Bridge in 1977. The bridge received final approval for construction as planned, following the plan outlined five years prior. On August 14, 1980, the Hoosick St. Bridge opened for transport at a cost of $32 million ($122 million in 2024).
The Uniting Line[edit]
In 2020, the City of Troy started a collaboration with the Arts Center of the Capital Region, TAP Inc., and Collar Works to revive the local community underneath the Hoosick St. Bridge. The collaboration planned to invest $1.25 million to revitalize a 500-foot stretch of Hoosick St. underneath the bridge. Phase 1 involved painting the concrete pillars holding the bridge up with art, using $250,000 of the budget. Phase 2 sought to illuminate the underside of the bridge in 2022, using $500,000 of the budget. Phase 3 sought to build performance areas and other attractions to draw in residents in 2023, using the remaining $500,000 of the budget.
Phase 1 was successfully completed in October 2021, at a cost of nearly $167,000. The mural, titled "Gems of Troy," was designed by local artist Jade Warrick and selected by community vote. The mural covered over 28,500 square feet of concrete across 32 pillars.
Phases 2 and 3 have not started as of 2024.
Sources[edit]
[2] https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Troy-wants-to-bridge-Hoosick-Street-divide-with-15868239.php