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Advocate asks Albany County Legislature to back Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad byway designation
Summary
A byway representative said Albany County is the only remaining county needed to complete a statewide resolution set and urged the Legislature to send a byway resolution to committee so phase 2 can proceed toward a 2027 designation.
Saladin Alai, who identified himself as representing the Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad byway, told the Albany County Legislature on July 13 that Albany County's resolution is the single remaining municipal action needed to move phase 2 of the byway designation forward.
“We have all but 11, and there is one county that we still need a resolution from, and that is Albany County,” Alai said, asking the Legislature to send a resolution to committee so it can reach the docket before the DOT deadline. He said the first phase (176 miles) generated roughly $3.6 billion in visitor tourism and that phase 2, which would include Albany to New York City, aims for designation by 2027 to tie in with the state’s bicentennial of abolition.
Alai said the New York State Legislature approved the byway quickly and the governor signed it within days; he urged the county to act on a similar timeline so the byway can meet program deadlines administered by the Department of Transportation. He said he would remain in the chamber after speaking to answer questions.
The transcript records the request during public comment but does not show the Legislature taking formal action on the byway resolution at the July 13 meeting.
