| County Route 98 | ||||
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| Frowein Road(Moriches Bypass) | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by SCDPW | ||||
| Length: | 5.05 mi[1] (8.13 km) | |||
| Existed: | 1958 – present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| West end: | CR 80 in Moriches | |||
| Brookfield(Manor)Road Chickchester Avenue(Former CR 25) Railroad Avenue |
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| East end: | CR 80 in East Moriches | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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Numbered highways in New York
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Suffolk County Road 98 is a county road in Southern-Central Suffolk County, New York. It runs east and west from Suffolk CR 80 in Moriches to Suffolk CR 80 in East Moriches. The road goes under two names; Frowein Road and the Moriches Bypass.
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Frowein Road has always been only two-lanes wide, but three years after being designated a county road in 1958, it was given additional right-of-ways for widening, as well as an at-grade interchange on the west end.[2] Plans for upgrading the road as a bypass go as far back as the 1930s.[3] The at-grade interchange also includes access to Moriches-Middle Island Road, a historic Long Island road that leads to Rocky Point-Yaphank Road. In addition, Suffolk County had planned to realign CR 25 from this interchange north through exit 69 on the Long Island Expressway. The proposed widening of the Moriches Bypass was also to include a section of Montauk Highway from the east end of Frowein Road into downtown Eastport. Unfortunately, due to fiscal concerns, and a general atmosphere of opposition to road improvements, this proposal was never implemented.
Just as Montauk Highway was realigned along the north side of the Montauk Branch of the Long Island Rail Road between East Patchogue and Brookhaven to divert through traffic away from Historic Bellport, Frowein Road was transformed into the Moriches Bypass, partially to divert truck traffic and through traffic away from historic sections of Moriches, Center Moriches, and East Moriches, New York, as well as the low railroad bridges in Moriches and East Moriches.
Moriches Bypass not only intersects with streets of local importance such as Brookfield(Manor) Road and Pine Street, but Chickchester Avenue(former Suffolk CR 25) and Railroad Avenue, both of which lead to Wading River-Center Moriches Road(former Suffolk CR 25), but only one of which leads to Chapman's Boulevard, the location of the Long Island Game Farm. Since the road runs along the north side of the LIRR tracks, it served as a more convenient route to Center Moriches Station until the Long Island Rail Road closed that station on March 16, 1998. East Moriches Station was also closer to Frowein Road, but that station was closed by the LIRR two years before Suffolk County upgraded the road.
From 1960 to 1972, Frowein Road was designated both as Suffolk County Road 98 and as New York State Truck Route 27A. Since Montauk Highway was designated New York State Route 27A as far as Eastport at the time, the road was considered an important detour for high trucks that would otherwise collide with the low railroad bridges over the then existing NY 27A in Moriches and East Moriches, New York. When the New York State Department of Transportation began to phase New York State Route 27A out east of Oakdale, New York, the designation as Suffolk County Road 98 became more prominent.[4] Today, Truck Detour Suffolk CR 80's exist closer to those bridges. The truck route around the bridge in Moriches is at Old Neck Road and Wilcox Avenue, and the truck route around the bridge in East Moriches is as Pine Street and Frowein Road.