I agree with most of what you've stated, but I think the biggest problem is drivers weaving in and out of lanes to pass people, and impatient drivers passing on the right (which is illegal), and is NEVER enforced.

It's also illegal for people to hog the left lane, but it is also NEVER enforced.

Tailgating (also illegal) it too is NEVER enforced.

The other major problem is that most of the drivers driving southbound feel the need to continue driving at 75, 80, 85, or 90 mph in the 55 mph zone.

I think if the 55 mph zone began at Exit 10, then by the time people reach Exit 9 and Exit 8A, they would hopefully get the message to slow down.

And, I'd hate to say it, but the car that appears to have caused this bus crash today was a Porsche. I'd be willing to bet that the driver of the Porsche was driving much too quickly and showing off and weaving and darting between vehicles, and cut too close to the bus and crashed into it.

And also, many times more often than not, the drivers who cause these type of horrific accidents along this stretch of the Northway are usually careless, cocky out-of-staters from New Jersey, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Quebec, etc... who think that the rules of the road do not apply to them because they are "just passing through".

As far as photo radar, many communities are getting rid of photo radar and red light cameras, because they are just not accurately reliable enough. There have even been cases where red light cameras have given people tickets when their vehicle was PARKED!

I just think that if the Thruway Authority or DOT or whatever would put 4 or 5 led-lighted, blinking, overhead 55 MPH ZONE signs, or even *gasp* changeable, variable-speed lane signs like many places in Europe have along busy stretches, that much of the fatal accidents could be somewhat lessened.

In some countries, they have: <<65 MPH>> <<55 MPH>> <<45 MPH>> on variable overhead signs to differentiate mandatory speeds in different lanes.

In conclusion, I think that the entire Capital District highway corridor needs a SEVERE overhaul-- this deadly section especially!!!

I agree with the overhead digital speed signs. From what I understand, and we have to wait for the official report, but from what I could find out today, the Porsche was speeding, and weaving and passing, and they saw the trooper in the center and slammed on the brakes causing the bus to hit them and they lost control. I think they would have skidded off the road at least if there had been no other cars, but might not have been as bad an accident.

I almost feel like saying the police should not sit there, but that would only make things worse.

The past few weeks the speeding enforcement has increases dramatically all over Saratoga County.

Not sure if this is an plan that they have, or if it is just because the weather is getting better.

I think that a dedicated 4th lane on the inside on both sides of the road, for through traffic would be the way to go.

So traffic coming south from exit 15 that is going straight through and not getting off in Saratoga County could keep at highway speed.

Same for northbound after the twins. 4th lane for dedicated traffic heading north of exit 15.

The traffic thins out after 15.

A new bridge to replace the twins with room to grow, maybe 5 or 6 lanes both sides, would be great.

Along with completing the 787 loop that was never finished, and the RT 32 bypass, would also help.

I agree that this area is long overdue for major highway upgrades and expansions.

A lot of traffic is on 87 that needs to be somewhere else. If 787 connected up to 890 and people could get to the Thruway west without going through Albany, that would help.

It will cost a lot of money, but it is worth it.

And one thing, and I know this is off topic, The train crossings are very dangerous, all over the Capital District and they are now running 3 gas trains a day and more will be added and they are running through heavy population areas.

These are Ethanol, Propane, and Gasoline, and Methane is due to be added. The trains are over 100 cars each.

Drivers go around the crossings, constantly, even with the improvements the rail road made at the crossings, it is still happening every day, in every town.

We should do what they did in Vegas and sink the rails in a trench and have no crossings.

When you look at whole line from Cohoes and Watervliet and all those crossings, and Mechanicville, and all the way to Saratoga and Scotia, and there have been crashes, recently, it just makes sense to take the automobile out of the equation as something that the train could hit.

No crossing, DOT needs to look into doing that soon.

I moved to the area in 2005 and have spent quite a few hours driving I-87.
One particular habit of local drivers I have noticed is that they seem to enjoy changing lanes while remaining entirely within my blind spots. And yes, my side mirrors are adjusted correctly, so I cannot see the side of the car in them.
Also, I hesitate to change lanes to allow other drivers to merge. As a great little bit of courtesy, they almost never let me back in the right lane after I do move over to allow them to merge.
Last I checked we’re all in this together, but most of the time you can’t tell based on behaviors.

The trooper sitting in the middle make people slam on their brakes and the state uses them for revenue collection and they should just increased taxes and raise the speed limit to 75 like most states have done on their highways and they should widen the roads to five Lanes on both sides with a six-lane where there are exits and there should be 2 through Wayne for traffic coming north from exit 24 going north of exit 15

They also should implement the VMT system and just send tickets to people when they exceed 85 miles per hour

This would free up the troopers and not have them in the center causing people to slam on the brakes and crash into other vehicles

I have to say that New York does the most traffic enforcement of any state that I've ever lived

New Jersey is almost as bad but in states where the police presence is last you often see cars driving 90 to a hundred miles an hour on the highway and the number of accidents is very small considering the speed at which people are driving

The speed is not the problem the problem is the people slamming on the brakes trying to avoid getting a ticket that causes these accidents

I feel like telling them that anytime they think they're going to get a ticket they should just grab the wheel using their right hand grab the left lower part of the wheel and pull it as hard as you can as fast as you can all the way around to the right 360 and just throw up your hands and say God take the wheel

call grab the right of the wheel with the left hand and just polar is hard as you can and slam into a tree head on

Because hitting those breaks and locking them up is the same effect as doing either of the things I described

And the texting has to stop the texting and the browsing the web has got to stop if there was one thing that the police could do it would be stopping that

Using the hands-free is bad enough but to see people with both hands tapping away looking at the screen will driving 75 80 miles an hour that's crazy

And the exotic cars are the worst especially those effing mustangs

Mustang the car of morons

When you get in at your IQ points drop about 50

I had to work on one and sitting at it literally I felt my brain D evolve

and other muscle cars should be banned from sale in the United States