The state Department of Transportation says it is moving forward with a $3 million study of Route 9A in Mount Pleasant and Ossining.

The study will look at bridges, lane width, drainage and more.

The road, which now has over 40,000 cars and trucks traveling on it a day, wasn't built for that kind of traffic back in 1932. It also wasn't built to handle the type of rain we get today, with storms like Ida flooding people's houses.

The road has been a problem for years, according to Briarcliff Manor Mayor Steven Vescio.

Vescio wrote a letter to the DOT in July 2019 asking for a study, saying police and fire responded to 120 crashes on a 2-mile stretch in 2018 alone. Vescio told News 12 then that trucks can only get over Route 9A on the Pleasantville Road Bridge if they pass in the fast lane. "We've had a few near-misses recently. If we did lose that bridge, it would be a major problem for us. It separates all EMS, fire and police from all our schools."

Vescio told News 12 today, "For the safety of the travelers, for the flooding of people's homes, for the first responders, it's not OK. Route 9A is not OK, and I'm glad the study will get underway…let's make sure the study doesn't sit on a shelf and collect dust."

Lawmakers and local leaders say they also expect good-paying jobs to come from the project they hope the study will lead to.