Mar. 9—State Sen. Peter Oberacker, R — Schenevus, has joined other Republican legislators in calling for increased state funding for local highway improvements.

"Local roads and bridges, and the dedicated workers that maintain them, are essential to public safety and our economy," Oberacker said in a media release. "As a past chairman of the Otsego County Public Works Committee and a town supervisor, I understand how critical state funding is to our local governments when making decisions on road and bridge maintenance. As work on the state budget progresses, our upstate infrastructure must be a leading priority."

Oberacker and fellow legislators, along with the New York State Association of County Highway Superintendents and the New York State Association of Town Superintendents of Highways Inc. called for greater state investment in local transportation infrastructure during a press conference Wednesday.

"Construction costs continue to increase and state funding has failed to keep pace," Oberacker said. "Additionally, new state laws and mandates have made it even more costly for our local highway departments to make needed improvements. My rural senate district encompasses all or part of seven counties and I travel these roads every day — I can state emphatically that there are needs that must be addressed.

"Even a modest increase in (Consolidated Highway Improvement Program) funding would greatly help our local highway departments maintain and improve the roads we travel every day. Infrastructure funding needs to be spread throughout the state and parity for our region is a must," Oberacker said.