‘Mile-Long’ Hudson Valley Traffic Light Gets Brand New Upgrade

Year-long construction in Ulster County, NY has finally come to an end... and so has a very controversial traffic light.

Construction in the town of Lloyd, NY required a detour for drivers using 44/55, and in anticipation of the additional traffic that would be sent down Chapel Hill Road, a temporary traffic light was installed to replace the former stop sign (below). Now that construction has ended, however, things look a little different.

Construction Project Finished in the Town of Lloyd, NY

In 2023, Town of Lloyd Supervisor David Plavchak said that he hoped the traffic light would become a permanent fixture after construction ended. Unfortunately, even with the light installed, rush hour traffic often saw massive mile-long lines of traffic (below).

Traffic Signal Changes at Chapel Hill Rd and Route 44

With the construction project finally finished, the traffic light remains, but in a different capacity. The stop sign on Chapel Hill Rd was reinstalled (below), and traffic now moves similarly to how it did before the 2023 changes.

New Traffic Signal Functions After Town of Lloyd, NY Construction Project

The traffic signal now only functions as a yield/stop signal. Drivers on 44 will see a blinking yellow light (below), indicating drivers to use caution as they pass through the intersection, and commuters on Chapel Hill Rd will see a blinking red light, meaning that it should be treated as a stop sign (above).

While the traffic light was originally installed to help control extra traffic caused by the construction project, many residents (including Supervisor Plavchak) were interested in seeing the benefit of a permanent light. With the return of the stop sign, however, it seems like traffic flow (and controls) have returned to the pre-construction status quo.