New York State Route 878

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Interstate 878 redirects here. For the I-878 designated from 1959 to 1972, see Interstate 878 (1959).

NY Route 878

Length:

4.93 mi^[1] (7.93 km)

Formed:

1989^[2]

West end:

Belt/NY 27 in Queens

Major
junctions:

I-678 in Queens

South end:

Atlantic Beach Bridge in Lawrence

Counties:

Queens, Nassau

New York State Routes
< NY 840		I-890 >

New York State Route 878 (NY 878) is a state highway in the U.S. state of New York, forming the Nassau Expressway. The route exists in two sections connected by Rockaway Boulevard and the Rockaway Turnpike, maintained in part by New York City, the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) (as New York State Route 909G), and Nassau County.^[3]^[4] The termini of the combined route are the Belt Parkway and Conduit Avenue (New York State Route 27) in Ozone Park, southern Queens, and the Atlantic Beach Bridge in Lawrence, southwestern Nassau County.

1 Route description
2 Communities along the route
3 Major intersections
4 History
5 References

[edit] Route description

The 3.73-mile (6.00 km) northwest section is mostly built to freeway standards and lies along the north edge of John F. Kennedy Airport, just south of the Belt Parkway and Conduit Avenue (New York State Route 27). Officially it stretches from the interchange between the Belt Parkway, Conduit Avenue (NY 27) and Cross Bay Boulevard east to the intersection of Rockaway Boulevard and Farmers Boulevard.^[5]^[6] The eastbound freeway does in fact begin in the median of Conduit Avenue just west of Cross Bay Boulevard - but it carries NY 27 until a point between the Rockaway Line underpass and Lefferts Boulevard. The separate NY 878 begins at that split, and carries eastbound one-way traffic only until the junction with Interstate 678 (Van Wyck Expressway). There it becomes two-way, continuing east past the JFK Expressway; the freeway ends at North Hangar Road. NY 878 ends soon after at Rockaway Boulevard and Farmers Boulevard, the second traffic signal after North Hangar Road. (The first is Rockaway Boulevard south-eastbound.)

The 0.70 miles (1.13 km) from Interstate 678 (Van Wyck Expressway) east to the JFK Expressway are designated Interstate 878 by the Federal Highway Administration^[7]^[6], making it the shortest Three-Digit Interstate Route in the Interstate Highway System^[8]. This designation is not signed or used internally by NYSDOT; in fact, this section of NY 878 is only signed eastbound, not on the shorter westbound side.^[9]

Between the two halves of NY 878, traffic uses Rockaway Boulevard in Queens and the Rockaway Turnpike in Nassau County. From the end of NY 878 to near Guy R. Brewer Boulevard, the road is maintained by the New York City Department of Transportation. From there to just short of the city line is New York State Route 909G; the last 0.07 miles (.11 km) are again city-maintained.^[6]^[10] The part of Rockaway Turnpike that helps connect NY 878 is maintained by Nassau County.^[4]^[11]

The 2.40-mile (3.86 km) southeast section of NY 878 is a surface expressway, with only two bridges - over the Long Island Rail Road Far Rockaway Branch and under Seagirt Boulevard at a trumpet interchange.^[12]^[11] As signed, NY 878 runs from the split with Rockaway Turnpike south to the Atlantic Beach Bridge toll plaza.^[9]^[13] However, only the 1.10-mile (1.77 km) piece from Burnside Avenue south to Meadow Causeway is actually considered NY 878 by NYSDOT; the road is county-maintained from Rockaway Turnpike to Burnside Avenue and from Meadow Causeway to the north end of the Seagirt Boulevard interchange. The 0.25 miles (0.40 km) through the interchange to the toll booth is New York State Route 900V, also NYSDOT-maintained.^[12]^[11]^[14]^[5]

[edit] Communities along the route

[edit] Major intersections

Exit numbers are only signed eastbound.

#	Destinations	Notes
	Belt Parkway west - Verrazano Bridge	westbound exit and eastbound entrance
	Kennedy Airport; New York State Route 27 west - North Conduit Avenue	westbound exit and eastbound entrance
	Lefferts Boulevard - Long Term Parking	eastbound exit and entrance
1S	Van Wyck Expressway south - Kennedy Airport	no westbound entrance; westbound exit is combined with NY 27 west
1N	Interstate 678 north - Van Wyck Expressway; Whitestone Bridge	no westbound entrance
2S	JFK Expressway - Kennedy Airport	no westbound exit
2N	Belt Parkway east; New York State Route 27 east - South Conduit Avenue	eastbound exit only
3	Kennedy Airport - North Hangar Road; North Boundary Road	at-grade intersection with westbound jughandle

[edit] History

From 1959 to 1972, the Interstate 878 designation was used for a section of what is now Interstate 278 (Bruckner Expressway) between the Sheridan Expressway (I-895) and the Cross-Bronx Expressway (I-95) in the Bronx. I-278 was routed north on the Sheridan, while its present route was taken by I-878.

At that time, the northwest piece of present NY 878 was to be part of Interstate 78, which would have continued from the Holland Tunnel along the Lower Manhattan Expressway, Williamsburg Bridge and Bushwick Expressway to reach the Nassau Expressway at Cross Bay Boulevard. Northeast of Kennedy Airport, I-78 was to turn north onto the Clearview Expressway, using the Throgs Neck Bridge and Cross Bronx Expressway to end at the Bruckner Interchange.

The one-way eastbound section of the Nassau Expressway from Cross Bay Boulevard to the Van Wyck Expressway was built in the late 1960s as part of I-78.^[15] I-78 through New York City was cancelled in March 1971, but the Nassau Expressway continued to be signed as I-78. The planned road east of the Van Wyck was redesignated as Interstate 878 in the late 1980s to allow for federal Interstate funding.^[16]