Interstate 190 (New York)

Interstate 190 marker

Interstate 190

Map of western New York with I-190 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by NYSTA, NYSDOT and the Niagara Falls Bridge Commission
Length: 28.34 mi[1] (45.61 km)
Existed: 1959[2] – present
Major junctions
South end: I-90 / New York Thruway in Cheektowaga
  QEW via Peace Bridge in Buffalo
I-290 in Tonawanda
North end: Highway 405 at the Canadian border in Lewiston
Highway system
NY 189NY 190
NY 90I-90NNY 91

Interstate 190 (I-190, locally known as The One-Ninety) is a north–south auxiliary Interstate Highway that connects I-90 in Buffalo, New York with the Canadian border near Niagara Falls. The freeway bisects downtown Buffalo before crossing Grand Island and travelling around the outskirts of Niagara Falls before crossing the Niagara River on the Queenston-Lewiston Bridge into Ontario. On the Canadian side of the border, the freeway continues as Highway 405, a short spur that connects with the Queen Elizabeth Way (QEW), which in turn provides a freeway connection to Toronto, Canada's largest city. The 28.34-mile-long (45.61 km) route also provides access to the Peace Bridge between Buffalo and Fort Erie, Ontario.

Officially, I-190 from I-90 north to New York State Route 384 (NY 384) is named the Niagara Thruway and is part of the New York State Thruway system. The remainder, from NY 384 to Lewiston, is known as the Niagara Expressway and is maintained by the New York State Department of Transportation. I-190 is the only three-digit Interstate Highway to reach the Canadian border, and one of only two to connect to an international border, the other being Interstate 110 in Texas.

Parts of the highway were built along the former rights-of-way of the Lehigh Valley Railroad and the Erie Canal. The entire route was built as part of the New York State Thruway in the late 1950s and early 1960s, and was completed in 1964. In 2006, the tolls along the freeway were removed, although the Grand Island ones remain in place.

Route description

Helvetica signage for exit 18A on I-190

I-190 begins at an interchange with the New York State Thruway (I-90) in Cheektowaga in Erie County, just north of the West Seneca town line and east of the Buffalo city line. I-190 heads west into Buffalo, passing the former location of the City Line toll barrier ahead of an interchange with South Ogden Street (exit 1). Farther west, I-190 meets NY 354 (exit 2), NY 16 (exit 3), and several local streets before entering downtown Buffalo. Within the downtown area, I-190 passes between First Niagara Center and Coca-Cola Field near an interchange with NY 5 (exit 7) on the shores of Lake Erie. At NY 5, I-190 turns northward to follow the path of the Niagara River. Shortly after meeting NY 266 (exit 8) immediately northwest of downtown, I-190 interchanges with Porter Avenue (exit 9), a local roadway connecting I-190 to the Peace Bridge and, thus, the Queen Elizabeth Way in Canada.[3]

North of downtown Buffalo, I-190 follows the eastern edge of the Black Rock Canal (and passes the site of the former Black Rock toll barrier) before rejoining the banks of the Niagara near an exit with the Scajaquada Expressway (NY 198, exit 11). I-190 continues north through the northern extents of Buffalo, meeting multiple streets before separating from the Niagara and interchanging with NY 266 and NY 324 (exits 15 and 16) in quick succession. At exit 16, NY 324 joins I-190 northward through western Tonawanda. The two routes then meet I-290 and NY 266 a second time prior to crossing the Niagara River on the South Grand Island Bridge. NY 324 leaves the expressway shortly after arriving on Grand Island at exit 18.[3]

Approaching NY 31 on I-190 southbound with the bank of the Upper Power Reservoir in view

I-190 and NY 324 follow parallel routings across Grand Island, with both roads passing on opposite sides of Martin's Fantasy Island, a local amusement park, near the center of the island. At the northern edge of the island, NY 324, as signed, terminates at exit 20; however, officially, NY 324 rejoins I-190 across the Niagara River once again via the North Grand Island Bridge. Now in Niagara Falls, Niagara County, NY 324 ends at a complex interchange featuring NY 384, the Robert Moses State Parkway, and the LaSalle Expressway on the eastern bank of the river. Farther north, I-190 meets U.S. Route 62 (US 62) at exit 22 and NY 182 at exit 23.[3]

Past NY 182, I-190 turns to the northwest, skirting the northeastern edge of Niagara Falls and roughly paralleling NY 265 to the east. In Lewiston, the expressway meets NY 31 at exit 24 southwest of the large Robert Moses Niagara Power Plant reservoir. I-190 continues onward, crossing the canal between the reservoir and the power plant on a small dam also used by NY 265. The freeway then interchanges with NY 265, the Robert Moses Parkway, and NY 104 at the expansive exit 25 before curving to the west and terminating at the approach to the Lewiston–Queenston Bridge. Across the bridge in Queenston, Ontario, the roadway becomes Highway 405.[3]

History

I-190 approaches exit 6 in Downtown Buffalo on a rainy afternoon.

The portion of modern I-190 south of NY 384 in Niagara Falls was originally built by the New York State Thruway Authority as part of the New York State Thruway system. Construction on two segments of the highway—from South Ogden Street to Porter Avenue in downtown Buffalo and from Beaver Island Parkway to West River Road on Grand Island—began in 1953.[4] On Grand Island, construction began to connect the two existing two lane bridges on July 16, 1954.[5] By 1955, construction had begun on the remainder of the Niagara Thruway.[6] On July 30, 1959, the Thruway was opened from the Tri-Level Interchange at I-90 to Porter Avenue, and from Sheridan Drive to the southern Grand Island bridge.[7] The remainder of the highway, with the exception of the twinned Grand Island bridges, was completed by 1964.[8]

On August 14, 1957, the routing of what is now I-190 (including the then-partially complete Niagara Thruway) was originally designated as I-90N, as intercity routes were assigned before three-digit Interstate numbers were applied to the shorter intracity routes.[9] I-90N was renumbered to I-190 on February 24, 1959.[2] Construction on the portion of I-190 north of NY 384 began c.1962[10][11] and was completed by 1964.[12]

In 1991, maintenance of I-84 in downstate New York was transferred from the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) to the New York State Thruway Authority (NYSTA). The monies for that purpose came from tolls levied on I-190 in downtown Buffalo.[13] Under the laws authorizing the Thruway construction, the tolls were to be removed once the original bonds used to pay for the construction were paid off, which occurred in 1996; however, the tolls would remain for ten more years. Attorney Carl Paladino brought a lawsuit against the state in 2006 to force the removal of the tolls.[14] On October 30, 2006, the Thruway Authority voted to both begin the process of returning maintenance of I-84 to NYSDOT and to remove the tolls on I-190 in Buffalo. Collection of the tolls stopped that day.[15] Both major candidates in the 2006 New York gubernatorial election, Democrat Eliot Spitzer and Republican John Faso, had pledged to remove the tolls on I-190 if elected.[16] While the toll barriers in Buffalo have since been demolished, the tolls further north on the two Grand Island bridges still remain.[17][18]

Exit list

CountyLocationmi[19]kmExitDestinationsNotes
ErieCheektowaga0.000.00 I-90 / New York Thruway Albany, ErieSouthbound exit and northbound entrance; southern terminus; I-90 exit 53
Buffalo0.701.131South Ogden Street
1.562.512 NY 354 (Clinton Street) to US 62 (Bailey Avenue)
2.223.573 NY 16 (Seneca Street)Southbound exit and northbound entrance
3.145.054Smith Street / Fillmore Avenue
3.796.105Hamburg StreetNorthbound exit and entrance
4.136.655Louisiana StreetSouthbound exit and entrance
4.998.036Elm Street
5.108.217 NY 5 west (Skyway) LackawannaNo northbound exit
5.208.377Church StreetNo southbound exit
5.869.438 NY 266 (Niagara Street)
6.5810.599Porter Avenue Peace Bridge, Fort Erie, CanadaTo Queen Elizabeth Way and Highway 3
7.7812.5210West Ferry StreetExit was part of the original design but never constructed
8.6913.9911 NY 198 (Scajaquada Expressway)Western terminus of NY 198
9.1814.7712Amherst StreetNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
9.4415.1913Austin StreetNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
9.8815.9014Ontario StreetSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
10.5016.9014Vulcan StreetNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
Town of Tonawanda12.3619.8915 NY 324 (Sheridan Drive)/ Kenmore AvenueNY 324 joins northbound and leaves southbound; northbound access via NY 325
13.3321.4516 I-290 east to I-90 / New York Thruway Rochester, Tonawanda
14.2022.8517 NY 266 (River Road) North Tonawanda, TonawandaNorth Tonawanda and Tonawanda shown as "Tonawandas" on guide signs
14.2622.95Tonawanda toll barrier ($1 cash or 95¢ E-ZPass northbound)
Niagara RiverSouth Grand Island Bridge
Grand Island15.3524.7018A NY 324 west (Grand Island Boulevard)Northbound exit and southbound entrance; NY 324 leaves northbound and joins southbound
15.4624.8818BBeaver Island State ParkExit 18 southbound
17.2727.7919Whitehaven Road
19.3231.0920B NY 324 east (Grand Island Boulevard) / Long RoadExit 20 northbound; NY 324 joins northbound and leaves southbound
19.6931.6920AWest River ParkwayNo northbound exit
20.2232.54Niagara Falls toll barrier ($1 cash or 95¢ E-ZPass southbound)
Niagara RiverNorth Grand Island Bridge
NiagaraNiagara Falls21.10–
21.20
33.96–
34.12
21 NY 384 (Buffalo Avenue) / Robert Moses Parkway Niagara FallsNY 324 terminates northbound and joins I-190 southbound
21.2434.18Begin Niagara Expressway (NYSDOT maintenance) northbound; begin Niagara Thruway (NYSTA maintenance) southbound
21A LaSalle Expressway east North Tonawanda, TonawandaNorth Tonawanda and Tonawanda shown as "Tonawandas" on guide signs
22.0835.5322 US 62 (Niagara Falls Boulevard) Airport
Niagara23.7438.2123 NY 182 (Packard Road/Porter Road)
25.8741.6324 NY 31 (Witmer Road)
Town of Lewiston27.7244.6125A NY 265 LewistonNo southbound exit
27.7244.6125B NY 104 / Robert Moses Parkway Lewiston
Niagara River28.3445.61 Highway 405 CanadaLewiston–Queenston Bridge (Canada–United States border); northern terminus; continuation into Ontario
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

References

  1. "Route Log and Finder List – Interstate System: Table 2". Federal Highway Administration. October 31, 2002. Retrieved October 29, 2007.
  2. 1 2 American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (2006). "Today in Interstate History: February 24". Retrieved April 22, 2012. February 24, 1959: The American Association of State Highway Officials formally approved changing the designation for I-90N in New York to I-190.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Microsoft; Nokia (September 13, 2012). "overview map of Interstate 190" (Map). Bing Maps. Microsoft. Retrieved September 13, 2012.
  4. Goldman, Mark (1990). City on the Lake: The Challenge of Change in Buffalo, New York. Prometheus Books. p. 31. ISBN 0879755792.
  5. "Niagara Thruway Begun". The New York Times. July 17, 1954. p. 11.
  6. "Thruway Spurs in North Rushed". The New York Times. August 6, 1955. p. 57.
  7. "Thruway Crosses Buffalo as Niagara Strip Opens". The New York Times. July 30, 1959. p. 10.
  8. Spieler, Cliff (May 6, 1964). "Niagara Highway Network Nears Completion". The New York Times. p. XX7.
  9. Official Route Numbering for the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways (Map). American Association of State Highway Officials. August 14, 1957.
  10. New York and Metropolitan New York (Map) (1961–62 ed.). Cartography by H.M. Gousha Company. Sunoco. 1961.
  11. New York with Sight-Seeing Guide (Map). Cartography by General Drafting. Esso. 1962.
  12. New York and Metropolitan New York (Map). Cartography by Rand McNally and Company. Sinclair Oil Corporation. 1964.
  13. Rife, Judy (September 20, 2007). "Thruway retains I-84 upkeep". Times Herald-Record (Middletown, NY). Retrieved October 30, 2007.
  14. Smerd, Jeremy (September 26, 2010). "Accidental candidate". Crain's New York Business. Retrieved September 26, 2010.
  15. "Thruway Authority Tolls Ceased At Black Rock and City Line Toll Barriers" (Press release). New York State Thruway Authority. October 30, 2006. Retrieved October 30, 2007.
  16. Fink, James (October 30, 2006). "I-190 tolls in rear-view mirror". Business First of Buffalo. Retrieved October 30, 2007.
  17. "The Grand Island Bridges". Niagara Falls Info. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
  18. "The I-190 Tolls". Higgins for Congress. Retrieved January 31, 2014.
  19. Mileage derived as follows:

External links

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