| County Route 50 | ||||
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| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by SCDPW | ||||
| Length: | 10.39 mi[1] (16.72 km) | |||
| Existed: | 1932(1945, 1959) – present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| West end: | Deer Park Avenue in Babylon | |||
| NY 231 in Babylon CR 82 in West Islip CR 13 / CR 13A in Bay Shore CR 57 in Bay Shore NY 111 in East Islip CR 17 in East Islip |
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| East end: | NY 27A in Great River | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Numbered highways in New York
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Suffolk County Route 50 is a county road in Southwestern Suffolk County, New York. It runs east and west between Babylon and Great River, New York. Most of the road is two lanes wide, although there are some areas where it opens up to four lanes, or simply allows center-left-turn lanes.
Of the four main east–west roads that run along the south shore of Long Island in Western Suffolk County, Suffolk CR 50's close proximity to the Montauk Branch of the Long Island Rail Road makes it a vital commuter route for residents of this section of the county.
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Suffolk CR 50 begins at the intersection of Deer Park Avenue in the Village of Babylon, north of the Montauk Branch of the Long Island Rail Road as Simon Street, but this name doesn't carry the designation very long. At the intersection of Cedar and Cooper Streets, CR 50 makes a sharp right turn along Cooper Street to cross under the tracks and immediately make a left onto John Street along the south side of the Montauk Branch for a slightly longer distance until reaching the quarter cloverleaf interchange with the Babylon-Northport Expressway on the Babylon Village-West Islip border, where it suddenly takes on the name Union Boulevard, the street that defines County Road 50. Union Boulevard continues to carry CR 50 along the south side of the Montauk Branch of the Long Island Rail Road between Babylon and Great River.
East of the intersection of Suffolk CR 82(Higbie Lane), Suffolk CR 50 runs beneath a pedestrian-railroad bridge, that spans between a shopping center and the intersection of Orinoco Drive and Patricia Avenue across the Montauk Branch, and another limited-access highway known as the Robert Moses Causeway in West Islip. Unlike the BNE, no access to this road is provided. The bridge that carries the Robert Moses Causeway over Union Boulevard, also carries it over the LIRR railroad tracks. After passing through northern sections of West Bay Shore, New York and the exclusive Village of Brightwaters, Suffolk CR 50 approaches southbound only Clinton Avenue and northbound only Fifth Avenue in Bay Shore, New York. Continuing its eastbound run on the south side of Bay Shore (LIRR station) then intersecting with Suffolk CR 57(Third Avenue), the road would serve as the unofficial northern border of downtown Bay Shore if it were not for the LIRR's Montauk Branch.
The last major intersection within Bay Shore is Brentwood Road, although Saxon Avenue also leads through NY 27. While Union Boulevard runs south of the railroad tracks, another street called Moffit Boulevard runs parallel to the north side of the tracks, which runs between Brentwood Road and Carleton Avenue. As the road enters the heart of Islip it intersects Nassau Avenue and more importantly New York State Route 111, two streets that serve Islip (LIRR station). Shortly after passing over the north end of Knapp Lake and Champlin Creek, the road curves somewhat further southeast as it intersects with Carleton Avenue in East Islip, which was originally a segment of NY 111 until 1966.
Union Boulevard runs beneath a third limited-access road between East Islip and Great River. This time it is the Heckscher State Parkway. No access to this parkway is provided, however exit 45W on the parkway leads to Harwood Road, which takes commuters to both New York State Route 27A and Suffolk CR 50. From the parkway bridge, the road enters both Suffolk County and New York State protected areas then intersects with Connetquot Avenue south of Great River (LIRR station). The road finally terminates at an at-grade interchange with New York State Route 27A and the entrance to the Bayard Cutting Arboretum.
Suffolk County had much more ambitious plans for CR 50 until the 1980s. While the intention was never to transform the road into a major divided highway, such as Veteran's Memorial Highway between Commack and Patchogue, it was intended to be a feeder route running from the Nassau-Suffolk border to eastern Islip Township. The suffixes attached to these extensions were more than likely to have been eliminated once the projects were complete. Proposals were to include the following: