BUFFALO, N. — Buffalo Mayor Sean Ryan says the city has "missed funding over the last few years" as aging infrastructure fails across the city.
As Buffalo grapples with massive water main breaks, the city has been sitting on nearly $40 million in unused state infrastructure funding that could have been used to upgrade infrastructure.
Ryan said previous administrations simply haven't used the available money, leading to chronic underinvestment in the city's infrastructure.
"We've missed funding over the last few years. There's road funding we didn't apply for, there's road funding we received and never put on the street," Ryan said.
WATCH: 'Never put on the street': Buffalo has not used $40 million available from New York State to upgrade infrastructure
Outside of New York City, Buffalo has the largest sum of unused state money designated to fix roads, bridges and possibly storm sewers and public utilities.
The breakdown of unused money that's been carried over includes:
- $23.5 million from the State Touring Route fund
- Almost $9 million from the local street and highway improvement program (CHIPS)
- $2.5 million from the Extreme Winter Recovery fund
- Almost $1.5 million from the PAVE-NY program
When asked about Ryan's comments, regarding underinvestment in Buffalo's infrastructure, Gov. Kathy Hochul said it's a statewide issue.
"Well that happens all over the state. It's a matter of finances," Hochul said.
@drantch A massive water main break caused a lot of damage at a busy Buffalo intersection- Hertel and Military - closing the area to traffic. #buffalo #buffalony #newyork #infrastructure ♬ original sound - Ed Drantch
But when looking around the state, outside of New York City, only Buffalo has this much money rolled over. Ryan says the city will not miss another opportunity.
A city spokesperson said when funding is not expended in a given construction season, it remains available for future eligible infrastructure projects. However, when asked if this funding will be used during the upcoming construction season, that spokesperson said there are no details to share about projects and this funding.
The 7 News I-Team reached out to the Brown administration. They did not return requests for comment.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
