Interstate 678
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
|||||
| Interstate 678 Auxiliary route of the Interstate Highway System |
|||||
| Length: | 14 mi (23 km) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Formed: | 1963 (1971) | ||||
| South end: |  JFK Int'l Airport in Queens, New York City |
||||
| Major junctions: |
 NY 878 at Exit 1 Belt Pkwy at Exit 1 Grand Ctrl Pkwy and Jackie Robinson Pkwy at Exit 10 I-495 at Exit 12 NY-25A at Exit 13 Cross Island Pkwy at Exit 16 |
||||
| North end: | Bruckner Interchange in the Bronx, New York City | ||||
|
|||||
Interstate 678 (abbreviated I-678) is a north-south spur route in the Interstate Highway System that runs 14 miles (23 km) entirely within two boroughs of New York City: Queens and the Bronx.
Interstate 678 is more commonly referred to by New Yorkers as the Van Wyck Expressway (or just "the Van Wyck"), and is named for Robert A. Van Wyck, the first mayor of New York City after the five boroughs were combined into one city, from 1898-1901. The Van Wyck Expressway is the roadway's locally-designated name for most of its route. Interstate 678 runs from a southern terminus at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and continues north across the Bronx Whitestone Bridge to a northern terminus at the Bruckner Interchange in the Bronx, which connects I-678 to Interstate 95 and Interstate 278. Interstate 678 also interchanges with Interstate 495, the Long Island Expressway.
North of Northern Boulevard (Exit 13) in northern Queens, Interstate 678 is designated as the Whitestone Expressway. This section of I-678 has its origins in the Whitestone Parkway, which was built at the same time as the Bronx Whitestone Bridge so as to service it. North of the Bronx Whitestone Bridge, it follows a section of what was once the Hutchinson River Parkway. Both of these sections were converted to Interstate Highway standards in the early 1960s to allow for commercial traffic and given its Interstate designation when the conversion was completed. The Van Wyck Expressway soon linked to it, and this section became part of I-678 in 1971 after the planned Astoria Expressway was cancelled. Although I-678 ends northbound at the Bruckner Interchange, the highway itself continues beyond the interchange as the Hutchinson River Parkway to the Connecticut state line, though commercial traffic is not allowed beyond this point.
Interstate 678 is known for its frequent traffic jams.
Portions of the AirTrain run on elevated tracks above I-678 south of exit 5 (Atlantic Avenue). The AirTrain is a light rail system connecting JFK Airport to Jamaica Station, a major transfer point on the Long Island Rail Road with frequent rail connections to Manhattan.
While designated as a three-digit interstate spur route, I-678 never intersects with its obstensible "parent" interstate, Interstate 78. Plans had existed to have Interstate 78 continue through New York City from its current terminus at the Holland Tunnel and along the (unbuilt) Lower Manhattan Expressway, over the Williamsburg Bridge, onto the Bushwick Expressway to the southern end of I-678 and continue up an extended Clearview Expressway.
[edit] Exit List
| Number | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|
 John F. Kennedy International Airport boundary.I-678 feeds directly into/from JFK Expressway. |
||
| 1 | NY 878/Nassau Expressway |
|
| 1A | Belt Parkway East NY 27/South Conduit Avenue |
Northbound Exit Only |
| 1B | Belt Parkway West NY 27/North Conduit Avenue |
Northbound Exit Only |
| 1E | Belt Parkway East NY 27/South Conduit Avenue |
Southbound Exit Only |
| 1W | Belt Parkway West NY 27/North Conduit Avenue |
Southbound Exit Only |
| 2 | Rockaway Boulevard | |
| 3 | Linden Boulevard | |
| 4 | Liberty Avenue | |
| 5 | Atlantic Avenue | |
| 6 | Jamaica Avenue Hillside Avenue |
|
| 7 | Jackie Robinson Parkway |
Southbound exit only |
| 8 | Main Street Union Turnpike |
|
| 9 |  Queens Boulevard |
Northbound exit only |
| 10 | Grand Central Parkway West LaGuardia Airport Interstate 278/Triborough Bridge |
Northbound exit only |
| 11 | Harry Van Arsdale Jr. Avenue Jewel Avenue 69th Road |
|
| 12A | I-495/Long Island Expressway East Eastern Long Island College Point Boulevard |
|
| 12B | I-495/Long Island Expressway West Queens-Midtown Tunnel |
|
| 13 | NY 25A/Northern Boulevard Astoria Boulevard Grand Central Parkway West LaGuardia Airport Interstate 278/Triborough Bridge |
|
| South of here I-678 is known as the Van Wyck Expressway. North of here it's known as the Whitestone Expressway. |
||
| 14 | Linden Place | |
| 15 | 20th Avenue | |
| 16 | Cross Island Parkway |
|
| 17 | 3rd Avenue (Northbound) 14th Avenue (Southbound) |
Exit 17 is an unofficial designation. Northbound exit is the last exit before toll. |
| Bronx-Whitestone Bridge. | ||
| Lafayette Avenue | ||
 Interstate 95 Interstate 278 West |
The Bruckner Interchange. All trucks must exit. | |
I-678 feeds directly into/from  Hutchinson River Parkway. |
||
 |
Auxiliary routes of Interstate 78 |
| I-278 | New Jersey/New York |
| I-478 | New York |
| I-678 | New York |
| I-878 | New York |
| New York City parkways | |
| Manhattan | FDR East River Drive - Harlem River Drive - Henry Hudson |
| The Bronx | Bronx River - Henry Hudson - Hutchinson River - Mosholu - Pelham |
| Brooklyn-Queens | Belt Parkway system: Cross Island - Laurelton - Shore - Southern Others: Grand Central - Jackie Robinson (Interborough) Former: Gowanus - Whitestone - Long Island Motor Parkway |
| Staten Island | Korean War Veterans (Richmond) Former: Willowbrook Proposed: Wolfe's Pond |
