The route heads northeast as the predominantly four-lane wide Commercial Drive, passing the Sangertown Square shopping mall and paralleling Mud Creek as it progresses through New Hartford.

[4] The route and the creek follow loosely parallel alignments to a point just outside the village limits of both New York Mills and the adjacent village of Yorkville, where NY 5A connects to NY 69 (Oriskany Boulevard) by way of a trumpet interchange.

Here, the route traverses several blocks of businesses and homes before crossing into the city of Utica, at Whitesboro Street (unsigned NY 921W).

Route 28 followed the north bank of the Mohawk River from Rome to Marcy, where it turned south toward Whitesboro on modern NY 291.

Once on the south bank, the route proceeded to Utica on Main and Whitesboro Streets.

[15] The intersection between Commercial Drive and Oriskany Boulevard was converted into a trumpet interchange around the same time.