SYRACUSE, N.Y. — Governor Kathy Hochul unveiled a new memorial honoring New York's fallen highway workers at the 2021 Great New York State Fair.
The memorial honors all transportation workers killed while performing their job duties on or near New York's thousands of miles of highways, including State Department of Transportation and Thruway Authority employees, municipal highway workers, contractors, consultants, and towing service employees.
"This memorial honors the hardworking New Yorkers who put their personal safety on the line to build our bridges, pave our roads and maintain our infrastructure so the rest of us can reach our destinations safely," Governor Hochul said. "This will serve as a lasting tribute to all those who lost their lives while performing their duties, and as a reminder that these dedicated workers are out there every day making our roads and bridges safer. We owe them all a debt of gratitude."
According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, from 2003-2017, 1,844 workers lost their lives at road construction sites across the United States, averaging 123 per year.
The State Department of Transportation alone has lost 56 workers during its existence, according to the news release.
The new memorial includes a centerpiece featuring a bronze sculpture of shovels, hard hats, and boots on a platform surrounded by four bronze traffic cones and a dedication plaque. It features paved walkways and seating for respectful reflection. Shrubs and trees have also been planted around the centerpiece and along the outside of the memorial.
"I want to make sure that when people talk about these essential workers, they talk about the people who also showed up on the roads, who kept showing up to a worksite during a pandemic...They kept building back New York during a pandemic, and to all the workers, I want all of us to give them a rousing round of applause because they got it done. They got it done and we'll never forget the sacrifice and what they did."