User:TwinsMetsFan/New York State Thruway

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New York State Thruway
Length: 496.00 mi[1] (798.23 km)
Formed: 1950s
West end: I-90 at Pennsylvania state line
Major
junctions:		 NY 400 in West Seneca
I-390 near Rochester
I-81 in Syracuse
I-88 near Schenectady
I-87/I-90 near Albany
I-84 in Newburgh
NY 17 in Harriman
Garden State Pkwy. in Ramapo
Palisades Pkwy. in West Nyack
South end: I-87 in New York City

The New York State Thruway (officially the Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway) is a limited-access toll highway in the U.S. state of New York. Built in the 1950s by the State of New York in order to connect the major cities of New York, it is the longest toll road in the United States, with the 496.00 mile (798.23 km) mainline extending from the Pennsylvania/New York State border in the west to the Bronx in the east. In 1958 it was incorporated into the Interstate Highway System as portions of Interstate 87, Interstate 287, Interstate 90, Interstate 84, and Interstate 190. It is operated by the New York State Thruway Authority (NYSTA).

Only three sections of the Thruway system are not part of the Interstate Highway System. One such section is the Garden State Parkway Connector, which branches from the Thruway mainline at exit 14A in Spring Valley to connect to the Garden State Parkway at the New Jersey state line near Montvale. Another section is located on the Thruway mainline within exit 24 in Albany, as the mainline is unnumbered for a brief distance between the point where Interstate 87 departs the roadway and Interstate 90 merges with the mainline. The third section, the longest such section on the Thruway, is a six-mile portion of the Berkshire Connector, which has no Interstate designation between exit 21A on the Mainline in Selkirk and exit B1 in Schodack, where the Berkshire Connector merges with I-90.

Of the 641.29 miles in the Thruway system, 632.31 miles (98.6%) carries at least one Interstate designation. Interstate 90, which comprises the bulk of the mainline and the Berkshire Connector, runs for 365.55 miles along the Thruway, including 17.70 miles as part of the Berkshire Connector and 347.85 miles on the mainline. Interstate 87 comprises the remaining 148.15 miles of the mainline, including an 18.86 mile long concurrency with Interstate 287 in New York City. Interstate 84 covers another 71.46 miles, including the New York State Bridge Authority-maintained Newburgh-Beacon Bridge, while Interstate 287 spans 29.76 miles (including the 18.86 miles shared with I-87), Interstate 190 lasts for 21.24 miles and Interstate 95 covers 15.01 miles.[1]

Contents

[edit] Route description

The New York State Thruway system is a collection of seven individual components across the state of New York, with the 496 mile long mainline as the centerpiece. The system connects New York to four neighboring states (Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania) as well as a Canadian province (Ontario).

All highways maintained by the NYSTA lack the green reference markers that exist on all New York State Department of Transportation-maintained roads, as would be expected. In their place, NYSTA-controlled roadways use small, square tenth-mile markers with a white background and blue numbering. These markers differ from those used by NYSDOT on limited-access highways as state-maintained expressways typically feature tenth-mile signage similar to that used in the remainder of the United States while state routes utilize the reference markers, which display mileage information on their third row.

Except on the mainline, mile markers on NYSTA-maintained roads bear the Thruway logo on the top and an identifier for that highway, such as an I-84 shield for Interstate 84 and the letters "CW" for the Cross-Westchester Expressway (Interstate 287). Mainline mile markers feature only the word "mile" and the current milepost of the Thruway in relation to New York City.

[edit] Mainline

From west to east, the Thruway begins as Interstate 90 along Lake Erie on the Pennsylvania border in Chautauqua County. It follows the lake shore northeast and passes along the eastern side of Buffalo. Across upstate New York, it roughly parallels the route of cross-state railroad tracks, which in turn follow the Erie Canal, passing north of Batavia, south of Rochester, north of Syracuse, and north of Utica before following the valley of the Mohawk River to Albany.

The New York State Thruway (I-87) looking east from Nordkop Mountain in Suffern.
The New York State Thruway (I-87) looking east from Nordkop Mountain in Suffern.

South of Albany, it continues as the southern portion of Interstate 87, roughly paralleling the Hudson River to the river's west, passing near Kingston, New Paltz, and Newburgh. In Harriman, the major closed ticket system comes to an end at the Woodbury toll barrier, located on the mainline within exit 16 (New York State Route 17), a trumpet interchange. Along with the mainline barrier in Harriman, a separate toll plaza exists on the exit 16 ramp midway between the Thruway and NY 17 exit 131 (New York State Route 32). To distinguish between exit 16 and the Woodbury toll barrier, Thruway tickets list the NY 17 interchange as exit 16 and the Woodbury toll plaza as exit 15, although the actual exit 15 is situated almost 15 miles to the south.

Northbound traffic on I-87 traveling through the Woodbury toll barrier is given a ticket stamped for exit 15 while travelers on southbound I-87 must surrender their ticket and pay the appropriate toll. Traffic heading south on I-87 and exiting at exit 16 must pay the appropriate toll for exit 16 at the Harriman toll plaza. Traffic heading north on I-87 and exiting at exit 16 must pay a fixed-rate toll at the Harriman plaza. Traffic entering the Thruway from NY 17 east must pay a fixed-rate toll at the Harriman barrier and, if traveling north, collect a discounted ticket stamped exit 16 at the Woodbury barrier. The ticket is identical to that given for exit 15 with the exception that the toll for exit 16 is subtracted from all of the prices.

South of Harriman, the Thruway follows the valley of the Ramapo River until its junction near the New Jersey border with Interstate 287, which it joins, then cuts east across Rockland County. It connects with the New York segment of the Garden State Parkway then crosses the Hudson on the Tappan Zee Bridge. On the east side of the Hudson it continues south through Westchester County to the Bronx. The exit numbering system begins at the Bronx/Westchester County line with exit 1 and ends with exit 61 at the Pennsylvania/New York border.

The highway employs both open-system and closed-system tolling. From the Bronx/Westchester County line to the New York State Route 17 exit, an open system (coin-drop) is used. From there northward, a closed system is employed where drivers must obtain tickets which show their point of entry and the cost of traveling from there to their desired point of exit. Upon exiting the Thruway, the ticket must be surrendered and the appropriate toll must be paid. Two separate closed systems are used on the Thruway mainline; one between NY 17 and Buffalo (with an inclusive spur route) and another from Buffalo to Exit 61.

[edit] Berkshire Connector

The Berkshire Connector is a 24.28 mile long east-west spur connecting the Thruway mainline to the Massachusetts Turnpike. The spur separates from the Thruway at exit 21A in Selkirk, south of Albany, and proceeds east over the Castleton Bridge, crossing the Hudson River, before navigating through the southernmost portion of Rensselaer County. In Schodack, the Connector meets Interstate 90 at exit B1. I-90 joins the Berkshire Connector, following the spur east into Columbia County.

Unlike the Rensselaer County segment, which runs east-west, the Berkshire Connector in Columbia County takes on a northwest-southeast alignment as the roadway heads toward Massachusetts. In East Chatham, I-90 and the Connector interchange with the northern terminus of the Taconic State Parkway at exit B2. Two miles to the southeast, the closed ticket system comes to an end at the Canaan toll barrier. The Thruway then interchanges with New York State Route 22 before crossing into Massachusetts and becoming the Mass Pike.

[edit] Cross-Westchester Expressway

Main article: Interstate 287

Interstate 287, locally known as the Cross-Westchester Expressway, is a toll-free component of the Thruway system. The Cross-Westchester begins at I-87/Thruway exit 8 in Elmsford, where I-287 splits from the Thruway mainline, and travels to the southeast across Westchester County to Interstate 95, the New England Thruway, exit 21 in Rye.

[edit] Garden State Parkway Connector

The Garden State Parkway Connector is a 2.40 mile long road that connects the Thruway with the Garden State Parkway at the New Jersey state line via interchange 14A. It is the only part of the Thruway system that prohibits commercial vehicles as the parkway prohibits commercial traffic north of exit 105. Although the connector itself is toll free, the Garden State Parkway mainline in New Jersey is tolled.

A New York State Thruway toll ticket, obtained at exit 25A.
A New York State Thruway toll ticket, obtained at exit 25A.

[edit] Interstate 84

Main article: Interstate 84 (New York)

Interstate 84 in New York is a toll-free component of the Thruway system, financed by the tolls collected on Interstate 190 in downtown Buffalo since the early 1990s. Only one portion of I-84 in New York, the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge connecting Newburgh and Beacon, carries a toll. However, the bridge is operated and maintained by the New York State Bridge Authority, which collects all revenue from tolls on the structure.

As of 2007, there is no direct connection between the Thruway mainline and Interstate 84. Instead, exits from both expressways (I-87/Thruway exit 17 and I-84 exit 7) use New York State Route 300. The lone interruption along the shared portion of NY 300 is a single traffic light at the intersection of NY 300 and Stewart Avenue, a local street connecting NY 300 to New York State Route 17K. Improvements have brought both interchanges individually up to freeway standards, though at a loss to local traffic. The Thruway Authority has a project in the works to build a direct interchange between I-84 and I-87, without compromising local access to either.[2]

On October 30, 2006, the tolls on I-190 in downtown Buffalo were removed and the process to transfer control and maintenance of I-84 back to the New York State Department of Transportation began.[3] The Grand Island Bridge tolls on I-190 remain intact.

[edit] New England Thruway

Main article: New England Thruway

The New England Thruway (NET) is a 15.01 mile long segment of Interstate 95 under the operation and maintenance of the Thruway Authority. The Thruway begins at the end of the Bruckner Expressway at Pelham Parkway (exit 8) and continues along I-95 to the Connecticut state line, where I-95 becomes the Connecticut Turnpike.

Between the The Bronx and New Rochelle, the Thruway is toll-free. At New Rochelle, a $1.25 toll is collected by way of a northbound-only toll barrier, the only such structure on the NET.[4] No toll exists on the entirety of I-95 southbound.

[edit] Niagara Thruway

Main article: Interstate 190 (New York)

The first 21.24 miles of Interstate 190 from I-90 in Buffalo to New York State Route 384 in Niagara Falls is known as the Niagara Thruway. North of NY 384, the expressway is named the Niagara Expressway.

[edit] History

A toll superhighway connecting the major cities of New York State which would become part of a larger nationwide highway network was first proposed in 1949. The following year, the New York State Legislature passed the Thruway Authority Act creating the New York State Thruway Authority (NYSTA), an independent public corporation, which would build and manage the turnpike. The project was to be financed through toll revenue bonds and self-liquidating by receipt of tolls, rents, concessions, and other income. The act also stipulated NYSTA adopt a hybrid system of tolls, with barrier tolls collected in urban areas, and long-distance tickets issued in rural areas.

The thruway opened in sections in the mid 1950s. The first section, between Lowell and Rochester, opened on June 24, 1954. The last section of 426 mi (681 km) mainline between Buffalo and the Bronx was completed on August 31, 1956. The total cost was 600 million dollars, financed by the sale of 972 million dollars of bonds. At the time, it was the longest toll road in the world.

The ticket system originally began at the Spring Valley toll barrier but was later moved to exit 16 to make it possible to build simple toll-free interchanges in the stretch between the two. The toll plaza at Suffern was dismantled along with this change.[citation needed] The Spring Valley toll barrier remains today as a westbound-only commercial traffic toll.

Example of all-metric signage near Syracuse during the late 1990s.
Example of all-metric signage near Syracuse during the late 1990s.

In 1957, the mainline was extended 70 mi (112 km) west from Buffalo along Lake Erie to the Pennsylvania border. From 1957 to 1960, several spurs of the road were built to connect the road to turnpikes in the neighboring states of Connecticut and Massachusetts. In 1958, sections of the Thruway were given the current designations as part of the Interstate Highway System.

In 1964, the New York State Legislature officially renamed the Thruway in honor of former governor Thomas E. Dewey. The official designation is, however, rarely used in reference to the road.

In the late 1990s, the NYSTA experimented with all-metric signage in the Syracuse area.

In August 1993, the NYSTA became the first agency to implement the E-ZPass electronic toll collection system. By December 1996 it was implemented at all toll barriers on the Thruway.

In 1997, the construction bond used to build the Thruway had been paid off, and all tolls along the Thruway were supposed to be abolished. However, the New York State Legislature voted to maintain the tolls. This action has engendered regional hostility within the state, particularly from the upstate counties which see the maintenance of the toll as a regional-based tax and that the tolls help maintain the economic disparity between the poor, rural upstate and the rich, urban downstate.

In 2006, the Thruway Authority voted to end tolls on a six mile section of the I-190 portion of the Thruway at the urging of many Buffalo area politicians. Both major candidates in the 2006 gubernatorial election, Democrat and eventual victor Eliot Spitzer and Republican John Faso, vowed to eliminate the tolls if elected. Tolls remain on the 496 mile Thruway mainline, as well as on the North and South Grand Island Bridges connecting I-190 with the island.

[edit] Exit list

[edit] Mainline

Interchanges are listed from southeast to northwest.

County Location Mile[1] # Destinations Notes
Westchester Yonkers 0.00 End Thruway.
I-87 continues south into New York City as the Major Deegan Expressway.
0.48 1 Hall Place (north), McLean Avenue (south) - Yonkers
1.42 2 Yonkers Avenue - Yonkers Northbound: exit only. Southbound: entrance only.
1.77 3 Mile Square Road - Yonkers Northbound: exit only. Southbound: entrance only.
2.18 4 Cross County Parkway - Tibbetts Brook Park, Mount Vernon No trucks.
2.70 5 NY 100 (Central Park Avenue) - White Plains Northbound only.
4.00 6 Tuckahoe Road - Yonkers, Bronxville
5.14 6A Corporate Drive - Ridge Hill Northbound: exit only. Southbound: entrance only.
5.47 Yonkers toll barrier.
Dobbs Ferry 7.84 7 NY 9A - Ardsley Northbound: exit only. Southbound: entrance only.
Greenburgh 10.33 7A Saw Mill River Parkway north - Yonkers, Katonah No trucks. Southbound: exit only.
11.31 8A NY 119 - Saw Mill River Parkway Southbound exit only.
11.31 8 I-287 (Cross-Westchester Expressway) east - Rye, Port Chester - To I-95 (New England Thruway, Connecticut Turnpike)/ I-684
Eastern terminus of I-87/Thruway/ I-287 concurrency.
Tarrytown 12.85 9 US 9 - Tarrytown Originally planned to include Interstate 487.[citation needed]
Rockland-Westchester county line 13.07 Tappan Zee Bridge over the Hudson River. $4.00 toll southbound.
Rockland South Nyack 16.75 10 US 9W - Nyack, South Nyack Southbound: no exit.
Nyack 17.42 11 US 9W/ NY 59 - Nyack, West Nyack
Clarkstown 18.76 12 NY 303 - Congers, West Nyack
20.94 13 Palisades Interstate Parkway - George Washington Bridge, Bear Mountain Bridge No trucks.
22.80 14 NY 59 - Spring Valley, Nanuet
Ramapo 23.53 14A Garden State Parkway Connector - New Jersey No trucks across the state line.
24.31 Spring Valley toll barrier (commercial vehicles only). Northbound only.
27.62 14B Airmont Road - Suffern, Montebello
Western terminus of I-87/Thruway/ I-287 concurrency.
30.17 15 I-287 west/ NY 17 south - New Jersey To NJ 17 east.
I-87/Thruway and NY 17 form a 1.18 mile concurrency.
31.35 15A NY 59 east/ NY 17 north - Sloatsburg Western terminus of NY 59. Major rest areas in both directions near Sloatsburg/Ramapo, connected by a pedestrian bridge over the highway. Northbound Rest Area has a designated "prayer area" primarily used by observant Jews en route from NYC area to the Catskills.
Orange Woodbury 45.12 16 US 6/NY 17 (future I-86)
Woodbury toll barrier. Southern terminus of major closed system (tickets/E-ZPass).
Newburgh 60.10 17 NY 300 to I-84 - Newburgh Direct I-84 interchange under construction.
New Paltz 76.01 18 NY 299 - New Paltz
Ulster Ulster 91.37 19 I-587/NY 28/To US 209 - Kingston, Rhinecliff Bridge I-587/NY 28 concurrency not shown on mainline guide signs.
Saugerties 101.25 20 NY 32 - Saugerties
Greene Catskill 113.89 21 NY 23 - Catskill, Cairo
New Baltimore 124.53 21B US 9W - Coxsackie, Ravena
Albany Coeymans 133.60 21A Berkshire Connector - To I-90 east/Mass. Turnpike, Boston (MA) Remain on closed system if you exit.
Bethlehem 134.93 22 NY 396/NY 144 - Selkirk
Albany 141.92 23 I-787 north - To US 9W Was also planned to include a connection between I-787 and the Adirondack Northway at US 20, running parallel to the Thruway mainline.[citation needed]
148.15 24 I-90 (Thruway mainline) west
I-87 (Adirondack Northway) north - Montreal		 Southeast approach.
I-90 east - To Berkshire Connector
I-87 (Thruway mainline) south		 Northwest approach.
Northern terminus of I-87 segment of Thruway mainline. Eastern terminus of I-90 segment of Thruway mainline.
Guilderland 153.83 25 I-890/To NY 7/ NY 146 - Schenectady
Schenectady Rotterdam 158.82 25A I-88 - Schenectady, Binghamton I-88 was to continue through Albany to Portsmouth, New Hampshire.[citation needed]
162.22 26 I-890/To NY 5S - Schenectady
Montgomery Amsterdam 173.59 27 NY 30 - Amsterdam
Glen 182.17 28 NY 30A - Fultonville, Fonda
Canajoharie 194.10 29 NY 10 - Canajoharie, Sharon Springs
Herkimer Danube 210.62 29A NY 169 - Little Falls, Dolgeville
Herkimer 219.70 30 NY 28 - Herkimer, Mohawk
Oneida Utica 232.85 31 I-790/To NY 8/NY 12 - Utica
Westmoreland 243.37 32 NY 233 - Westmoreland, Rome
Verona 252.71 33 NY 365 - Verona, Rome
Madison Lenox 261.5 34 NY 13 - Canastota
Onondaga Dewitt 276.58 34A I-481/ NY 481 - Syracuse, Oswego
East Syracuse 278.93 35 NY 298 - Syracuse, East Syracuse
Mattydale 282.93 36 I-81 - Watertown, Binghamton
Salina 283.79 37 Electronics Parkway - Syracuse, Liverpool
285.95 38 CR 57 - Syracuse, Liverpool
Van Buren-Geddes town line 289.53 39 I-690/ NY 690 - Syracuse, Fulton
Cayuga Brutus 304.19 40 NY 34 - Auburn, Weedsport
Seneca Tyre 320.41 41 NY 414 - Waterloo, Clyde
Ontario Phelps 327.10 42 NY 14 - Geneva, Lyons
Manchester 340.15 43 NY 21 - Manchester, Palmyra
Farmington 347.13 44 NY 332 - Canandaigua, Victor
Victor 350.99 45 I-490 (Eastern Expressway) - Rochester, Victor To NY 96.
Monroe Henrietta 362.44 46 I-390 - Rochester, Corning
Genesee Bergen 378.56 47 I-490 (Western Expressway)/ NY 19 - Rochester, Le Roy
Batavia 390.13 48 NY 98 - Batavia, Albion
Pembroke 401.72 48A NY 77 - Pembroke, Medina
Erie Cheektowaga 417.27 49 NY 78 - Depew, Lockport
Williamsville 419.69 Williamsville toll barrier. Western terminus of major closed system (tickets/E-ZPass).
420.34 50 I-290 (Youngmann Expressway) - To I-190
Cheektowaga 420.70 50A Cleveland Drive Eastbound: exit only. Westbound: entrance only.
421.57 51 NY 33 (Kensington Expressway) - Downtown Buffalo, Rochester To Buffalo Niagara International Airport.
423.19 52 Walden Avenue Unsigned NY 952Q.
424.92 52A William Street
426.17 53 I-190 (Niagara Thruway) - Downtown Buffalo, Fort Erie (Ontario, Canada) I-190 is the only three-digit interstate to reach an international border.
West Seneca 427.94 54 NY 400 (Aurora Expressway) - To NY 16 - West Seneca, East Aurora
429.47 55 US 219 (Springville Expressway) - West Seneca, Orchard Park, Ridge Road
430.51 Lackawanna toll barrier. Eastern terminus of minor closed system (tickets/E-ZPass).
Lackawanna 432.45 56 NY 179 (Mile Strip Road) - Blasdell, Hamburg
Hamburg 436.22 57 NY 75 - Hamburg
Evans 444.87 57A Eden-Evans Center Road - Eden, Angola To US 20 and NY 5 (Angola). To US 62 (Eden).
Chautauqua Hanover 455.54 58 NY 438 - Irving, Gowanda To Cattaraugus Indian Reservation.
Dunkirk 467.74 59 NY 60 - Dunkirk, Fredonia
Westfield 485.00 60 NY 394 - Westfield, Mayville Former routing of NY 17.
Ripley 494.51 Ripley toll barrier. Western terminus of minor closed system (tickets/E-ZPass).
494.92 61 Shortman Road - Ripley
496.00 End Thruway.
I-90 continues west into Pennsylvania.

[edit] Berkshire Connector

Exits are numbered from west to east, in accordance with AASHTO guidelines.

County Location Mile[1] # Destinations Notes
Albany Coeymans 0.00 I-87 (Thruway Mainline) - New York City (south), Albany, Buffalo via I-90 (north) Westbound exit and eastbound entrance. Remain on closed system.
Castleton Bridge (Hudson River).
Rensselaer Schodack 6.58 B1 I-90 west/US 9 - Albany, Hudson I-90 joins eastbound and leaves westbound.
Columbia Chatham 15.09 B2 Taconic State Parkway/NY 295
Canaan 17.83 Canaan toll barrier. Eastern terminus of major closed system (tickets/E-ZPass).
23.27 B3 NY 22 - Austerlitz, New Lebanon
24.28 End Thruway.
I-90 continues east as the Massachusetts Turnpike.

[edit] Cross-Westchester Expressway

See Interstate 287.

[edit] Garden State Parkway Connector

County Location Mile[1] # Destinations Notes
Rockland Spring Valley 0.00 I-87/I-287 - Albany, New York City
2.09 Schoolhouse Road - Chestnut Ridge Southbound: exit only. Northbound: entrance only.
2.40 New Jersey state line.
GSP Connector continues south as the Garden State Parkway.

[edit] Interstate 84

See Interstate 84.

[edit] New England Thruway

See New England Thruway.

[edit] Niagara Thruway

See Interstate 190.

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c d e NYSTA Interchange Listing with Mileposts
  2. ^ NYSTA I-84/I-87 Interchange Project
  3. ^ NYSTA Press Release on Buffalo tolls
  4. ^ NYSTA Toll Barriers

[edit] External links

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