New York State Route 5S (NY 5S) is a east–west state highway located in the Mohawk Valley of New York in the United States. It extends from a continuation of NY 5A at an interchange with NY 5, NY 8, NY 12, and Interstate 790 (I-790) in Utica to an interchange with NY 890 in Rotterdam. The route runs along the south side of the Mohawk River for its entire length and parallels NY 5, which runs along the north side of the Mohawk River (hence the "S" in the route number of NY 5S). NY 5S intersects several primary routes including NY 28 in Mohawk, NY 30A in Fultonville, NY 30 south of Amsterdam, as well as intersecting the New York State Thruway (I-90) several times. The route is part of New York State Bicycle Route 5 west of its junction with NY 103 in Schenectady County.
In 1924, the portion of modern NY 5S between Utica and Mohawk was designated as the northernmost portion of NY 28, which connected Oneonta to Utica. When NY 5S was assigned in 1930, the route stretched from Oneida in the west to Schenectady in the east, absorbing the old section of NY 28. It was later truncated on both ends to eliminate overlaps with other state routes and to accommodate the construction of other roadways, most notably I-890 in western Schenectady. In some locations, NY 5S has been upgraded into a super two or an expressway, mostly in Utica and western Herkimer County.
Route description
NY 5S begins at an interchange with I-790 in downtown Utica, where Oriskany Street changes designations from NY 5A to NY 5S. At this interchange, I-790 is concurrent with NY 5, NY 8, and NY 12 along Utica's North–South Arterial. The freeway connects NY 5S to the New York State Thruway. From this interchange, NY 5S travels east across Utica as an urban arterial roadway with at grade intersections. First a signalized intersection with Genesee Street (NY 921C, an unsigned reference route) and a roundabout with John Street (unsigned NY 921P). After it crosses Broad Street, it continues east as a limited-access highway with grade-separated intersections to the Herkimer County line.
The highway meets a trumpet interchange with Culver Avenue as it enters Herkimer County. Roughly east from here, is an interchange for Turner Street, a small connector road. NY 5S enters West Frankfort and has an exit for Dyke Road, which connects to the Thruway and NY 5. In West Frankfort, it parallels one of its many old alignments. NY 5S continues southward, encountering a diamond interchange with Higby Road and Cemetery Street in Frankfort. Just past the Herkimer County Fairgrounds, NY 5S crosses under NY 171, the latter of which it does not connect to. In East Frankfort, NY 5S intersects with its old routing and turns to the east. NY 5S enters Ilion, where it meets a partial cloverleaf interchange with NY 51. NY 5S passes to the south of Herkimer and has junctions with local roads before intersecting and briefly overlapping NY 28 in Mohawk. While in Mohawk, NY 5S also intersects with South Washington Street (unsigned NY 922B).
Past Mohawk, NY 5S begins to parallel the Mohawk River and the Thruway as it continues eastward. NY 5S enters the town of Little Falls, and has a brief overlap with NY 167, and then begins to climb Fall Hill. At the other side of the hill, the highway intersects the southern terminus of NY 169, which connects NY 5S with exit 29A on the Thruway. From here, NY 5S passes through farmlands and parallels the Thruway even farther before reaching the village of Fort Plain, where it has a brief overlap with NY 80. From NY 80, NY 5S continues east, paralleling the Thruway, before intersecting NY 10 in the village of Canajoharie. In the latter, NY 5S is village-maintained in the immediate vicinity of its junction with NY 10. This stretch is the only part of the route that is not maintained by the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT). Shortly past NY 10, the highway intersects exit 29 of the Thruway. From here, the highway continues east for roughly before intersecting the northern terminus of NY 162 in the town of Root.