Editing Interstate 787 (section)

== Future ==
[[File:2024-07-14 12 09 09 View north along Interstate 787 (Riverfront Route) from the overpass for the ramp to Empire Plaza in Albany, Albany County, New York.jpg|thumb|right|View north along I-787 from the US 9/US 20/South Mall Arterial "circle" interchange]]
In 2016, New York Assembly member [[Patricia Fahy]] advocated for I-787 to be demolished and to be replaced with an at-grade highway to improve traffic and access to the waterfront.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesunion.com/opinion/article/Demolish-I-787-and-the-Capital-Region-will-14474506.php|title=Demolish I-787 and the Capital Region will flourish|last=Fahy|first=Patricia|date=2019-09-28|website=Times Union|access-date=2019-12-15}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://alloveralbany.com/archive/2016/02/01/what-if-tearing-down-i-787-could-actually-improve|title=What if tearing down I-787 could actually improve traffic?|last=Johnston|first=Sandy|date=February 1, 2016|website=All Over Albany|access-date=2019-12-15}}</ref> In December 2019, Fahy "announced plans to introduce legislation calling for the state Department of Transportation to conduct an engineering feasibility study that would assess the replacement or modification of I-787 to provide greater access to Albany's waterfront and revitalize working class communities located along its route". According to Fahy, "The Capital Region's greatest asset—access to the Hudson River waterfront—has been more or less absent from communities including downtown Albany since the late 1960s and early 1970s when I-787 went up [...]. Following announcements of the removal of several similar highways in cities throughout the state, conducting an engineering feasibility study will provide a blueprint and cost estimates for either removing or transforming I-787 into a boulevard-style roadway".<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/Assemblywoman-Fahy-calls-for-modifying-I-787-14922208.php|title=Remove I-787? Fahy wants a feasibility study|date=December 20, 2019|website=Times Union}}</ref>

In March 2018, a draft report was released regarding the findings of an I-787/Hudson Waterfront Corridor Study. The study was prepared for the Capital District Transportation Committee. The draft report set forth various recommendations for improvements to I-787, including "re-configuring some interchanges, making the waterfront more accessible to bicyclists and pedestrians, converting from an expressway to a more traditional roadway, and pursuing strategies to reduce travel demand". The draft report noted that 88,000&nbsp;vehicles per day travel into downtown Albany on I-787. It also noted that the report did not recommend significant changes, such as making I-787 into an underground highway or removing it altogether; such ideas would be complicated by railroad tracks in the I-787 median and by the fact that I-787 is located in a flood plain.<ref name="auto" /> Released in May 2019, the final report detailed various possible future plans for I-787. Those potential future plans included the conversion of the entirety of the Interstate to an at-grade urban arterial. The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) has continued to run studies and request public feedback for "Reimagine 787" project.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Lucas |first1=Dave |title=Delegation from Albany attends conference in Atlanta as future of Interstate 787 is debated |url=https://www.wamc.org/news/2023-11-16/delegation-from-albany-attends-conference-in-atlanta-as-future-of-interstate-787-is-debated |access-date=25 November 2023 |work=WAMC |date=16 November 2023 |language=en}}</ref>