OBSERVER Photo by M.J. Stafford Work continued last week on “bump outs” at Main Street’s intersection with Lake Shore Drive in Dunkirk.

The Lake Shore Drive project in Dunkirk is motoring toward completion and should be finished in mid-October.

EJ Hayes, the city of Dunkirk’s deputy director of planning and development, offered that information and more during a Thursday update of the project with the OBSERVER.

“The median islands are installed and will be landscaped in mid- to late September,” he said. Trees will be planted in some spots along the roadside, he added.

There are “bump outs” installed, or getting installed, at four of Lake Shore Drive’s intersections: Swan Street, Central Avenue, Washington Avenue and Main Street. The bump outs are installed at the first three locations, and the Main Street one is currently under construction, according to Hayes.

The bump outs are basically extensions of the sidewalk into the shoulders of the road. They are intended to make things easier on pedestrians crossing Lake Shore Drive, and that idea’s part of the Complete Streets program that governs the project.

Complete Streets advocates changes to roadways to make them safer and friendlier for pedestrians and cyclists. New York State and Chautauqua County both officially encourage the use of Complete Streets principles in road projects.

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“I know it’s getting mixed reviews,” Hayes said of the Lake Shore Drive project. “At the end of the day, it will dramatically improve the aesthetics and safety of our waterfront.” He also noted the county and state’s support of the project.

Beyond the landscaping, installation of signage and lane striping that’s left, one major bit of work remains at the Lake Shore Drive/Central Avenue intersection.

Hayes said that intersection will be milled and repaved in the next two weeks, with an improved striping and painting scheme planned.

That’s the only place on the road where any more paving will happen in the project. Hayes said that repaving on the rest of Lake Shore Drive is at the discretion of the New York State Department of Transportation.