Malone seeks state speed‑limit study after Route 25 bridge closure shifts heavy truck traffic

The Town Board of Malone on Sept. 25 authorized Town Clerk Abby Monica to submit paperwork to New York State asking that the state conduct a traffic study to consider lowering the 55 mph speed limit on River Road and Webster Street.

Highway Superintendent Michael Andrews told the board that the county bridge on Route 25 may take up to two years before work begins, shifting heavy logging trucks, tractor‑trailers and dump trucks onto alternate local routes. "It could take two years to even start fixing the bridge," Andrews said, describing heavier traffic and resident safety concerns on roads where people walk and where curves are common.

Andrews said the town has begun hauling salt in‑house and that the crew's use of the flow‑boy has saved about $11.65 per ton compared with previous procurement; a new salt shed is expected to be ready for paving work. He told the board he has received calls from residents worried about safety on River Road, Low Road and Webster Street.

The board passed Resolution 243‑2024 unanimously (Ayes 5), authorizing the town clerk to request a state study and noting that the state police had acknowledged the town's safety concerns. Andrews told the board that if the state denies a reduced legal speed limit, the town can ask to install a recommended legal speed sign (the yellow-and-black advisory signs).

The resolution does not itself change the legal speed limit; any reduction would require state review and approval. The town's action creates a formal record asking the state to evaluate whether posted speeds should be adjusted because of changed traffic patterns resulting from the bridge closure.