New York State Route 19

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

NY Route 19
Length: 108.62 mi[1] (174.81 km)
Formed: 1930[2]
South end: PA 449 at Willing
Major
junctions:
I-86 / NY 17 near Belmont
NY 39 in Pike
US 20A in Warsaw
US 20 in Pavilion
I-90 / Thruway via I-490 near Bergen
NY 31 near Brockport
North end: Lake Ontario Pkwy in Hamlin
Counties: Allegany, Wyoming, Genesee, Monroe
Numbered highways in New York
< NY 18F NY 19A >
Interstate - U.S. - N.Y. - Reference

New York State Route 19 is a north-south state highway in Western New York. It is the longest state highway in that region, and the only other one besides NY 14 to completely transect the state from the Pennsylvania state line to the shore of Lake Ontario.

19 does not traverse any major cities or metropolitan areas and remains a two-lane rural road for almost its entire length. However, it follows the Genesee River for much of its lower length, and offers easy access to the gorges of Letchworth State Park midway along its route.

Contents

[edit] Route description

Allegany County accounts for about a third of 19's total length, with the other three counties splitting the rest about equally.

[edit] Allegany County

PA 449 becomes 19 just north of Genesee, Pennsylvania, as it runs along the river through a narrow valley. Just south of the first New York community it encounters, the hamlet of Shongo in the Town of Willing, it crosses the river. Running a little further from the Genesee, 19 reaches another hamlet, Stannards, several miles further north, along with its first state highway junction, NY 248, which leaves to the east.

After Stannards, 19 crosses Chenunda Creek as the Genesee Valley widens somewhat, and then a short distance to the north reaches Wellsville, the largest community in the county. It merges with NY 417, the east-west former route of NY 17 through the village, forming its main street along the Genesee, which here runs through a concrete-lined flood control channel.

North of Wellsville, the 19 corridor remains fairly well-developed as the highway makes its way to the smaller village of Belmont, the county seat. Here 19 crosses the Genesee for the last time, and then NY 244 leaves for Alfred to the east at the village center.

A mile past Belmont 19 has its only direct freeway interchange, with NY 17 and Interstate 86. Beyond it, it follows the river closely through the hamlets of Belfast, where NY 305 terminates. The next junction with another state highway NY 243, comes at Caneadea, the next hamlet. It then passes thorough Houghton, home to Houghton College. NY 19A splits off in Fillmore to continue the riverside course and provide access to Letchworth, while 19 climbs out of the valley and out of Allegany County.

[edit] Wyoming County

After the short bend where it crosses the county line, 19 bends slightly to the west as it comes into Pike a mile to the north. This village does not present any major intersections. However, southbound travelers unfamiliar with the highway sometimes wind up following DeWitt Road into Allegany County and the hamlet of Centerville since the left turn 19 takes in that direction at the south end of the village is only indicated by one aging sign at the roadside, and DeWitt looks like the better-quality road at that point.

North of Pike, 19 intersects NY 39, the main east-west road across southern Wyoming County and for a short stretch overlaps it. The next village, a few miles further on, is Gainesville. Again the intersecting state highway is displaced to the north of the village, where NY 78 heads off to the east despite being signed as a north-south route.

At the hamlet of Rock Glen, 19A returns to its parent route. A few miles further on, 19 reaches another county seat, Warsaw. The highway, along with the intersecting US 20A, serves as one of the village's two commercial axes.

Upon leaving Warsaw to the north, 19, having trended slightly to the west since the state line, reaches its apex and begins to go slightly to the northeast for the remainder of the route. It begins this new course in through the Wyoming Valley, formed by Oatka Creek, the Genesee tributary. At the Middlebury-Covington town line, 19 takes a sudden right turn from its route to follow Schwytzer-East Bethany Road for three miles to Silver Springs Road, where it once again assumes a due north heading.

[edit] Genesee County

Almost immediately after the county line 19 stops at a traffic light with NY 63 in the hamlet of Pavilion. The similarly-named but smaller Pavilion Center marks the junction with US 20.

At Le Roy, 19 intersects the state's other major east-west route, NY 5, and begins to leave the Oatka behind as the river and the route both descend the Onondaga Escarpment. Shortly afterwards, it crosses the Interstate 90 segment of the New York State Thruway just west of the Interstate 490 exit. While 19 is signed for this exit along the Thruway, access to it comes via the first exit on 490, which is accessed via connector roads as the two highways do not directly intersect.

North of the Thruway, 19 intersects NY 33 and NY 262 at Bergen. Several miles later, after passing the Bergen Swamp Wildlife Refuge, it crosses its last county line.

[edit] Monroe County

After passing through the lightly populated Town of Sweden, NY 19 intersects NY 31 a short distance south of the southern boundary of Brockport, the largest community on 19's entire length. Here the road crosses the Erie Canal and passes SUNY Brockport. After the northern boundary of the village, 19 reaches NY 104 at the hamlet of Clarkson less than a mile later.

Now known as Lake Road, 19 assumes a straight course again for the several miles of open country to its next junction, NY 18 at Hamlin. Just north of the quiet hamlet, Lake Road takes the right (northeast) fork as NY 360 branches off following the left one. A few miles more brings it to North Hamlin and finally 19's northern terminus at the Lake Ontario State Parkway. The section from North Hamlin Road to the LOSP is maintained by Monroe County. The road, no longer Route 19, crosses the Parkway for access to two Lake Ontario beach communities.

[edit] History

In 1924, the portion of modern NY 19 from Wellsville to Belvidere (north of Belmont) was designated as part of NY 17.[3] By 1926, what became NY 19 between Belvidere and Pavilion, as well as current NY 63 from Pavilion to Lake Ontario, was designated New York State Route 62.[4] The remainder of current NY 19 from Wellsville south to Pennsylvania, as well as from Pavilion north to Lake Ontario, was unnumbered until the 1930 renumbering.[2]

In the 1930 renumbering, NY 19 was assigned to the former routing of NY 17 from Wellsville to Belvidere and to former NY 62 from Belvidere to Lake Ontario. North of Pavilion, NY 19 became NY 63.[2] NY 19 also continued south of Wellsville to its present terminus at the Pennsylvania state line.[5] Later, by 1938, the routings of NY 19 and NY 63 were swapped north of Pavilion, placing both routes on their current alignment.[6]

[edit] NY 19A

NY 19A

NY 19A (19.06 miles (30.67 km)[1]) is a western alternate to NY 19 between Fillmore and Rock Glen, connecting to Silver Springs, Castile and Portageville.

[edit] Major intersections

County Location Mile[1] Roads intersected Notes
Allegany Willing 0.00 PA 449 Continuation into Pennsylvania
Town of Wellsville 6.74 NY 248 Hamlet of Stannards; western terminus of NY 248
Village of Wellsville 9.08 NY 417 east Eastern terminus of overlap
10.54 NY 417 west Western terminus of overlap
Belmont 19.45 NY 244 Western terminus of NY 244
Amity / Angelica
town line
22.37 I-86 / NY 17 Exit 30 (I-86/NY 17)
Belfast 28.23 NY 305 Eastern terminus of NY 305
Caneadea 33.36 NY 243 Eastern terminus of NY 243
Fillmore 40.31 NY 19A Southern terminus of NY 19A
Wyoming Village of Pike 48.90 NY 39 west Southern terminus of overlap
Town of Pike 49.51 NY 39 east Northern terminus of overlap
Gainesville 55.07 NY 78 Southern terminus of NY 78
56.59 NY 19A Northern terminus of NY 19A
Village of Warsaw 61.58 US 20A
Genesee Pavilion 73.95 NY 63
76.29 US 20 Hamlet of Pavilion Center
Village of Le Roy 81.45 NY 5
Town of Bergen 85.70
I-490 to I-90 / Thruway
Exit 1 (I-490)
Village of Bergen 88.64 NY 33
88.96 NY 262 Eastern terminus of NY 262
Monroe Sweden 97.53 NY 31
Clarkson 100.08 NY 104
Hamlin 104.44 NY 18
105.25 NY 360 Eastern terminus of NY 360
108.62 Lake Ontario State Parkway

[edit] Bannered routes

NY 19 has two short truck routes, one in the village of Belmont and another circumventing the village of Brockport.

[edit] Belmont truck route



NY Route 19 Truck
Location Belmont

NY 19 Truck in Belmont follows Genesee Street (overlapping NY 244) and Greenwich Street around the northern portion of the village, effectively acting as a short bypass.

NY 19 Truck was assigned in 2002 when a weight restriction was added to the bridge over the Genesee River on NY 19.[7]

[edit] Brockport truck route



NY Route 19 Truck
Location Brockport

NY 19 Truck in Brockport begins at the intersection of NY 31 and NY 19 south of Brockport and follows NY 31 west on Fourth Section Road, then north on Redman Road to Clarkson-Sweden Town Line Road. Here, NY 19 Truck splits from NY 31 and travels east on Clarkson-Sweden Town Line Road (as NY 943B, an unsigned reference route) into Brockport, where it reconnects to NY 19.[8]

The route was assigned to provide a bypass for trucks around a low bridge carrying the Falls Road Railroad over NY 19 in the village.[9]

[edit] References

  1. ^ a b c Traffic Data Report - NY 15 to NY 23 (PDF). NYSDOT (2007-07-16). Retrieved on 2007-10-12.
  2. ^ a b c Leon A. Dickinson. "New Signs for State Highways", New York Times, 1930-01-12, p. 136. 
  3. ^ "New York's Main Highways Designated by Numbers", New York Times, 1924-12-21, p. XX9. 
  4. ^ Rand McNally. Rand McNally Auto Road Atlas [map]. (1926) Retrieved on 2007-10-12.
  5. ^ Automobile Legal Association (ALA) Automobile Green Book, 1930/31 and 1931/32 editions, (Scarborough Motor Guide Co., Boston, 1930 and 1931). The 1930/31 edition shows New York state routes prior to the 1930 renumbering
  6. ^ Automobile Legal Association (ALA) Automobile Green Book, 1938/39 edition, (W.A. Thibodeau, 1938).
  7. ^ NY 19 Truck/NY 244 Multiplex. Retrieved on 2007-12-05.
  8. ^ Traffic Data Report - NY 908F to NY 953B (PDF). NYSDOT (2007-07-16). Retrieved on 2007-12-06.
  9. ^ NY 19 Truck/NY 31 Multiplex. Retrieved on 2007-12-05.

[edit] External links