The Engineering Division’s primary mission is to oversee the design, construction and inspection of all County highway and bridge improvement capital projects. The Division works with DPW’s Highway Construction and Maintenance (HCM) Division to identify the need for improvement or maintenance projects. For capital improvement projects, the Division programs these projects and estimates their cost. When available, the Engineering Division pursues State and Federal funding to assist the County in implementing these projects. A list of the current engineering projects that are eligible for partial federal or state reimbursement, may be viewed on the Transportation Council's Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP). The Division may assist the HCM Division in designing and inspecting maintenance projects to be constructed with in-house forces. The Division also designs and manages county-funded road and bridge improvement projects, which may be constructed using contractors.
The Archive of Engineering Projects (2014-2012) shows photos of some of the highway and bridge improvement projects completed over the past three years, under the direction of the Engineering Division. The Division is also responsible for:
The Division is also responsible for providing engineering support services for the County and local agencies. The Engineering Division has overseen the design and construction of the County’s two extremely successful rail trails, William R. Steinhaus Dutchess Rail Trail and Harlem Valley Rail Trail. The Division provides assistance as requested to the Airport Division, Building Division and Park Division projects and routinely assists local governments with traffic and safety expertise.
Article 6, Section 136 of the NYS Highway Law prohibits entrance onto and work to be performed on a county highway except pursuant to the authority of a permit and under the rules and regulations prescribed by the County Superintendent of Highways or Commissioner of Public Works. In accordance with these duties, the Dutchess County Department of Public Works has assembled technical and procedural requirements for gaining access to and performing any work along Dutchess County highways. These requirements (commonly referred to as the “Highway Work Permit Policy”) protect the public by regulating traffic that enters and leaves the County highway system, preserve the public’s investment in highway capacity and condition, and assures uniform design and construction for all work along county highways.
Regulation of access and utility work is intended to promulgate the safe and efficient movement of people and goods, as well as assuring that the County highway system will provide reasonably convenient access to abutting property owners. Through the permit review process, Dutchess County Department of Public Works can ensure that access and utility construction work on county highways will be planned, designed, and constructed in a manner that maintains a quality transportation infrastructure while providing for the safe and efficient access to county highways.
Some of the County’s road and bridge capital improvement projects are eligible for partial federal reimbursement and the Engineering Division is responsible for managing these projects , in conjunction with the State and Federal funding agencies.
All of these projects are listed on the Federal Highway Administration’s Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP).
In the five-year capital plan for this region, the Dutchess County Transportation Council (PDCTC), includes the fiscal year in which each phase of the projects become eligible for federal funding and the estimated cost.
Project phases include Preliminary Design (PD), Detailed Design (DD), ROW Acquisition (RA), Construction (C) and Construction Inspection (CI).
