Interstate 278

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Interstate 278 sign
Route of Interstate 278 in the metropolitan area of ​​New York City

The Interstate 278 (abbreviated I-278 ) is an interstate highway in the area of the states of New Jersey and New York in the United States . The highway runs along a length of 57.32 kilometers of the US Highway 1 in Linden , New Jersey, up to the motorway junction Bruckner Interchange in the east of the borough The Bronx of the city New York City , from where the road as Interstate 95 toward New Haven , Connecticut, continues. Interstate 278 crosses all boroughs of New York City and serves as a link between the different parts of the city. The interstate shares its course with various freeways , the Union Freeway in Union County , New Jersey, the Staten Island Expressway on the course through Staten Island , the Gowanus Expressway in Brooklyn and the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway in Brooklyn and Queens . Interstate also has 278 shares in Grand Central Parkway in Queens and the Bruckner Expressway in the Bronx.

The first part of the street was built in the 1930s, after which it was gradually expanded and completed in the 1960s. Since large parts of Interstate 278 were built before the introduction of the interstate highway system in the United States, the road no longer meets today's standards in places, which is why renovation work is repeated. The street was designed by the New York city planner Robert Moses . The expansion to New Jersey took place by 1969. The original plan to run the road to Springfield , New Jersey and connect there to Interstate 78 was discarded after protests in the neighboring communities.

course

New Jersey

Beginning of the road in Linden, New Jersey

Interstate 278 begins at the junction with US Highways 1 and 9 in the north of the small town of Linden in Union County of New Jersey. The road leads in an easterly direction and at this point has four lanes with two lanes in each direction, with the east lane being extended to three lanes on the bridge over Park Avenue. After about two kilometers, Interstate 278 meets in the area of ​​the City of Elizabeth at a freeway junction with New Jersey State Route 439 and the New Jersey Turnpike (I-95). After the turnpike, Interstate 278 crosses the Arthur Kill over the Goethals Bridge and thus leaves the state of New Jersey. Located in New Jersey, the three-kilometer stretch of the interstate is also known as the Union Freeway, after the county in which it is located. The road is administered at the point by the New Jersey Department of Transportation , the Goethals Bridge belongs to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey .

Staten Island Expressway

Time-lapse footage of a north-south drive on Interstate 278

The Staten Island Expressway (SIE) begins at the Goethals Bridge over the Arthur Kill. The road is then subject to a toll and has eight lanes from the toll station with four lanes in each direction. From this point on, the street is maintained by the New York State Department of Transportation . After a junction on Forest Avenue, Interstate 278 meets New York State Route 440 (West Shore Expressway), with which the road briefly splits. After the junction on Richmond Avenue, New York State Route 440 splits off from Interstate 278 and runs as Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Expressway north towards Hoboken .

The Staten Island Expressway continues east, from Victory Boulevard Gannon Avenue runs as a so-called " frontage road " on both sides of Interstate 278. This Frontage road ends shortly before the junction of Slosson Avenue. The road also has a bus lane at this point, which has also been used as a high-occupancy vehicle lane by vehicles with several passengers since 2008 . Immediately past Slosson Avenue, Interstate 278 leads through a wooded area, where the remaining section of the unfinished Richmond Parkway is located , which was to be connected to the Staten Island Expressway at this point. After three more junctions, Interstate 278 again passes a customs post for the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge over the Narrows Strait . The bridge has a total of 13 lanes, six below and seven above, one of the latter is used as a HOV lane. The bridge is maintained by the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority and connects Staten Island with Brooklyn . This location of Interstate 278 is one of the busiest streets in New York City.

Gowanus Expressway

Gowanus Expressway during the Five Boro Bike Tour in 2008

Behind the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge, Interstate 278 continues under the name Gowanus Expressway in the area of ​​the Brooklyn borough. Immediately behind the bridge is a connection to the Belt Parkway, which runs along the Narrows, as well as a connection to 92nd Street as a seven-lane motorway with four lanes (including one HOV lane) to the north and three lanes to the south. Later there is an interchange on 7th Street, which from then on runs parallel to Interstate 278. At 65th Street, the interstate makes a bend to the west and then again to the northeast, from there the street is briefly identical to the Belt Parkway. At this point, west of Interstate 278, are the industrial facilities of the New York Harbor.

On the further course the Gowanus Expressway crosses with 38th Street and with the western end of New York State Route 27 . After the junction with NY Route 27, Interstate 278 will be expanded to eight lanes, shortly afterwards it will come to an intersection with the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel , part of Interstate 495 . I-278 bends north and runs parallel to the Hudson River , with the Manhattan skyline to the west .

Brooklyn – Queens Expressway

Brooklyn – Queens Expressway in Downtown Brooklyn

In northwest Brooklyn, Interstate 278 bends east and crosses with the Brooklyn Bridge , which continues from there to Manhattan. Afterwards, the street, known from this point as Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, crosses under a bridge of the New York Subway and has junctions on Tillary Street and Flushing Avenue. Shortly thereafter, the Whyte Street junction follows in Downtown Brooklyn. The Brooklyn – Queens Expressway passes through the Williamsburg neighborhood as a six-lane road with a connection to the Williamsburg Bridge and later to Metropolitan Avenue. Another junction is located on McGuiness Boulevard / Humboldt Street. The Brooklyn – Queens Expressway then runs through an industrial area where the road over the Kosciuszko Bridge crosses Newtown Creek .

After the Kosciuszko Bridge, Interstate 278 passes the Queens borough . There the road crosses again with Interstate 495 (Long Island Expressway), then bends to the east and leads again through inhabited area. There is a connection to New York State Route 25 (Queens Boulevard). In its further course, Interstate 278 passes under a stretch of Long Island Rail Road , in the direction of the interchanges Broadway and Roosevelt Avenue, the route runs to a traffic junction designed as a diamond with an intersection with New York State Route 25A . There the carriageway splits with four lanes in each direction into a west and an east direction, via which there is a junction with Astoria Boulevard. Although only the southbound lanes are shown as an interstate highway at this point, the highway is treated as an interstate highway in both directions.

Grand Central Parkway

The Grand Central Parkway in Queens heading west just before the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge with Hoyt Avenue to the left and right of the street

After the junction, Interstate 278 continues as Grand Central Parkway. This crosses over the eight-lane toll Triborough Bridge to the East River and thus leads on in the district Manhattan lying Wards Iceland , where the road but does not hit populated area. On the island, Grand Central Parkway runs north and intersects with Franklin D. Roosevelt East River Drive , which connects the street with the Harlem neighborhood. Interstate 278 continues north and crosses the Bronx Kill into The Bronx Borough .

Bruckner Expressway

Signage at the junction between Interstate 278 and New York State Route 895 (here still labeled as Interstate 895)

In the Bronx, Interstate 278 is part of the Brucker Expressway. Shortly after it starts, the southern end of Interstate 87 (Major Deegan Expressway) branches off from here, with a connection to 138th Street immediately behind it. Interstate 278 continues as a six-lane road to the northeast through some industrial areas and after about three kilometers bends to the east, at this point the New York State Route 895 branches off in the direction of Interstate 95 (Cross Bronx Expressway). Interstate 278 crosses the Bronx River over a moving bridge .

Interstate 278 ends after 57.32 kilometers of the Neighborhood Schuylerville at the Bruckner Interchange . The Bruckner Expressway becomes part of Interstate 95 and continues in the direction of the New England Thurway. At the Brucker Interchange, Interstate 278 is also connected to Interstate Highways 295 and 678 .

history

New Jersey

Junction to Interstate 278 in Linden, New Jersey (2016)

The plans to expand Interstate 278 as the Union Freeway into the state of New Jersey began in 1955. The aim was initially to connect the previous end of the road behind the Goethals Bridge with the cities of Springfield and Millburn in Union County. The plans met with broad rejection in the municipalities of Roselle Park , Kenilworth and Union Township , as the road would have led directly through populated areas. In 1967, those responsible in New Jersey decided not to consider expanding Interstate 278 any further, and the funds made available were then used to expand Interstate 195 . The only connection completed in New Jersey is at US Routes 1 and 9 in Linden, which are located on a street at this point and which were opened to traffic in 1969 after construction costs of 11.5 million US dollars.

In the late 1960s, there were plans to expand the Union Freeway and connect it to Interstate 287 near Hanover Township , but the Federal Highway Administration rejected these plans in 1970.

The Goethals Bridge, built in 1929, which connects mainland New Jersey with Staten Island and thus with the metropolitan area of ​​New York City, was demolished and rebuilt in 2014. The east-facing part of the new Goethals Bridge was opened to traffic in both directions in June 2017, while the west-facing part of the bridge was opened in May 2018.

Staten Island Expressway

Interstate 278 on Victory Boulevard in Staten Island

The Staten Island Expressway was planned from 1941 under the project name Cross-Richmond Express Highway as a link between the Goethals and the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge in order to better develop Staten Island in terms of infrastructure. The planning was taken over in 1945 by urban planner Robert Moses . Construction of the highway was approved in the 1950s and construction of the road began in 1959. The Staten Island Expressway was dedicated as part of Interstate 278 at that time.

Originally, the Staten Island Expressway was to be connected to the Outerbridge Crossing further south via the Richmond Parkway , against which there was fierce opposition within the population of Staten Island. Construction of the Richmond Parkway was still under way, but was abandoned in 1966 after John Lindsay took over the office of mayor . The northern, unfinished part of Richmond Parkway to Interstate 278 became the Staten Island Greenbelt , a public park in the geographic center of Staten Island.

The first part of the Staten Island Expressway between Goethals Bridge and the junction on Victory Boulevard was opened to traffic in January 1964, with the remaining part opened later that year. The cost to design and build the Staten Island Expressway was approximately $ 47 million. In 1998, the Staten Island Expressway was expanded to include bus lanes, which were expanded to the Slosson Avenue junction by 2005. Since 2008, the bus lanes have also been released for vehicles with several passengers during rush hour , so-called HOV lanes or carpool lanes. In July 2008, an expansion of the Staten Island Expressway was announced to improve the traffic situation. Construction began in November 2010 and the new Fingerboard Road / Lily Pond Avenue junction was opened to traffic on July 9, 2012.

Gowanus Expressway

The Gowanus Expressway, formerly known as Gowanus Parkway, is the oldest part of what is now Interstate 278, and planning for this section began in the early 1930s. Construction of the street began in 1939 and the street followed the course of the Third Avenue Line tramway over which it was built. The Gowanus Expressway was completed in 1941. The route was part of a Belt Parkway and was initially dedicated as New York State Route 27A . The Gowanus Expressway was later expanded as a link between the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge and the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel and reopened in May 1950. The road was initially planned with twelve lanes, but after protests from the adjacent Bay Ridge, it was ultimately only six lanes . At the same time, the Gowanus Expressway became part of the Interstate Highway program and was given the number 278. The expansion of the road was completed in 1964, the construction costs amounted to about 100 million US dollars.

By the year 2000, the Gowanus Expressway was extended to the north by another vehicle lane to improve the flow of traffic in the direction of Manhattan. The substructure of the road is currently in need of renovation. In a feasibility study in 1998, the New York State Department of Transportation considered dismantling the above-ground road and converting it into a tunnel, but the plans were discarded in November 2011 for reasons of cost.

Brooklyn – Queens Expressway

Traffic jam on the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway in Brooklyn Heights
Sign for the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway at the entrance to Brooklyn

In 1936, planning began for the construction of what was initially called the Brooklyn – Queens Connecting Highway, which was to connect the Gowanus Expressway with the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge (then still known as the Triborough Bridge). The first section between the Triborough Bridge and the Meeker Avenue junction and the Kosciuczko Bridge on this section were opened in 1939. Further plans also envisaged an expansion of the expressway between Meeker Avenue and Williamsburg Bridge to relieve traffic to Manhattan. The section was opened on May 25, 1950. A further expansion of the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway took place until June 23, 1964 between the Brooklyn Bridge and the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel, whereby the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway was connected to the Gowanus Parkway. The resulting gap between the Brooklyn Bridge and the Williamsburg Bridge was finally closed in the following years; on September 1, 1958, the opening took place between the Williamsburg Bridge and the connection to Flushing Avenue and on August 26, 1959 both the piece between the Brooklyn Bridge and Tillary Street and the road between Grand Central Parkway and the Roosevelt junction were Avenue released.

The last open piece of Interstate 278 between Tillary Street and Flushing Avenue was opened on January 6, 1960, the expansion of the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway was completely finished in December 1964 after construction costs of about 137 million US dollars. The junction with the Long Island Expressway in south Queens was rebuilt in 1966.

View over the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway towards Lower Manhattan

According to Moses' original plans, the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway should not run along the East River, but instead cross the entire Brooklyn Heights district . These plans were averted by the Brooklyn Heights Association after residents protests, instead the expressway in Brooklyn Heights now follows the course of Furman Street as a superstructure. In 1959, the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway was dedicated as Interstate 278. The road had to be expanded in places to meet the status of an interstate highway, in the 1980s and 1990s extensive renovation work was carried out on the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway. In the early 2000s, further renovations were carried out on Interstate 278, for example the viaduct on which the road runs was renovated. The Kosciuszko Bridge was rebuilt on the eastern side between 2014 and 2017, and the western side of the bridge is to be opened to traffic again in 2020.

Bruckner Expressway

The Bruckner Expressway was originally part of the New York State Route 1A and was also established from the 1930s as a connection between the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge and Westchester County , north of New York City . The planning was taken over by Robert Moses in 1951, the construction of the section between the Kennedy Bridge and the Bronx River began in 1957, the construction of the section up to the Bruckner Interchange, which is also under construction, began in 1959. The first section up to the Bruckner Interchange was started in 1961, the second construction phase was completed in October 1962. The complete expansion of the line was completed with the completion of the Bruckner Interchange in 1972.

The first portion of the Brucker Expressway to Major Deegan Expressway was rededicated to Interstate 278 during the 1960s and the remainder in 1970. Previously, this section was dedicated as New York State Route 878 .

Traffic volume

Interstate Highway 278 is an important thoroughfare between the boroughs of New York City, making it one of the busiest roads in the city. In 2015, the New York City Department of Transportation conducted a traffic count on the expressway. The most heavily used was the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge with 181,405 vehicles per day, followed by the Brooklyn – Queens Expressway with 164,326 vehicles per day and the area of ​​Staten Island with 158,806 vehicles per day. Other areas with more than 150,000 vehicles a day were the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge and the Kosciuczko Bridge.

Buildings

Goethals Bridge

The Goethals Bridge connects the state of New Jersey with the New York borough of Staten Island . The bridge is a tanner girder bridge and crosses the Arthur Kill, a strait that separates Staten Island from the mainland. The bridge was opened to traffic on June 29, 1929. The Goethals Bridge has a total length of 2164 meters and a clearance height of 41.7 meters, the longest span of the bridge is 205 meters. The Goethals Bridge has a total of four lanes, each three meters wide.

In 2014, construction work began on a new bridge. It is passed by around 31.3 million vehicles every year.

Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge

View of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge

The planning for a bridge over the Narrows was started in 1926 by the engineer David B. Steinman . At that time, Staten Island was still completely separated from the land area of ​​New York and the only connection to the island was through the Staten Island Ferry . From 1946 this idea was taken up again by Robert Moses, the then head of the Triborough Bridge and Tunnel Authority (TBTA). The engineering office Ammann & Whitney was commissioned with the planning . Construction lasted from 1959 to 1964 and cost around $ 320 million, and the bridge opened on November 21, 1964. In 1969 the bridge was given a second floor due to the volume of traffic.

Kosciuszko Bridge

The Kosciuszko Bridge in front of the new building (photo from 2008)
The new Kosciuszko Bridge at night in October 2018

The Kosciuszko Bridge crosses Newtown Creek and connects the New York boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens. As early as 1803, a structure was built over Newtown Creek at the location of the bridge, this bridge was named "Penny Bridge". The bridge has been renewed several times. The new bridge was built in the late 1930s, opened on August 23, 1939 and was initially called the "Meeker Avenue Bridge". Construction costs were about $ 6 to $ 13 million, which after inflation would be $ 108 to $ 234 million. The bridge has a total length of 1835 meters. In 1940 the Meeker Avenue Bridge was renamed Kosciuszko Bridge, after Tadeusz Kościuszko , a Polish-born fighter in the American War of Independence . In 1965 the Kosciuszko Bridge was extensively refurbished, during which the roadways were widened.

In 2015, the bridge was passed by around 150,000 vehicles a day, which was around eighteen times the traffic volume compared to the construction time. Furthermore, the bridge did not have the modern standards of a motorway bridge, for example it had no hard shoulder and had no drainage . In 2009 it was finally decided to build a new bridge with four lanes on the western side and five lanes on the eastern side as well as a cycle and walkway. On December 4, 2014, construction of the new cable-stayed bridge began almost a year late . The eastern side of the bridge was completed in 2017, the western side of the carriageway is expected to be opened to traffic in 2020.

Robert F. Kennedy Bridge

Construction of the Robert F. Kennedy Bridge began in 1929, but construction had to be stopped the following year due to lack of funds. In 1933 the bridge construction was continued, so that the bridge could be opened on July 11, 1936. The Robert F. Kennedy Bridge, which is practically composed of three different bridges, has a total length of 1580 meters. The span of the suspension bridge over the East River is 421 meters between the pylons, it is 30 meters wide and has a clear height of 44 meters. The bridge over the Bronx Kill is a truss bridge with a clearance height of 17 meters and an abutment spacing of 488 meters. The bridge over the Harlem River is not part of Interstate 278. The bridge was named Triborough Bridge until November 19, 2010, after which it was renamed in memory of former Senator Robert F. Kennedy .

See also

Web links

Commons : Interstate 278  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b I-278 Straight Line Diagram. (PDF) New Jersey Department of Transportation, accessed March 18, 2019 .
  2. ↑ Maura Yates: Staten Island Expressway bus lane open to HOV starting on monday. Staten Island Advance, January 11, 2008, accessed March 18, 2019 .
  3. ↑ NYCDOT Bridges and Tunnels: Annual Condition Report 2010. (PDF) New York City Department of Transportation, 2011, p. 199 , accessed on March 19, 2019 .
  4. ^ A b c George Cable Wright: New Roads With New Numbers Will Parallel Old US Routes. New York Times , September 19, 1958, accessed March 18, 2019 .
  5. ^ SI-to-Turnpike Link Is Opening Tomorrow. New York Times, October 29, 1969, accessed March 18, 2019 .
  6. ^ Report on the Status of the Federal-Aid Highway Program. United States Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works , April 15, 1970, accessed March 19, 2019 .
  7. ↑ Tracey Porpora: Goethals Bridge now open in both directions. Staten Island Advance, June 11, 2017, accessed March 19, 2019 .
  8. ↑ Maura Yates: Staten Island Expressway improvements set to begin - with inconveniences. Staten Island Advance, November 22, 2010, accessed March 18, 2019 .
  9. ↑ New Last Exit Before Brooklyn-bound Verrazano-Narrows Bridge In Place Beginning Mon., July 9th. MTA Press Releases, July 6, 2012, accessed March 18, 2019 .
  10. ↑ Bob Liff: Keep HOV Lane at Gowanus. New York Times, March 6, 2000.
  11. ↑ Daniel Rush: Get used to the Gowanus! Brooklyn Paper, December 1, 2011, accessed March 18, 2019 .
  12. ↑ a b MAYOR OPENS SPAN WITH PEACE PLEA; Denounces Foes of Amity at Dedication of $ 13,194,399 Meeker Ave. Bridge SEES NEIGHBORLY SYMBOL Hatred Artificial, He Warns-- Brooklyn-Queens Link Gives New Routes. New York Times, August 24, 1939; accessed March 19, 2019 .
  13. ↑ Brooklyn-Queens Link To Be Completed Today. New York Times, December 23, 1964; accessed March 19, 2019 .
  14. ^ Seth Faison: New Year Brings New Road Projects to Test Commuters Patience. New York Times, January 4, 1993, accessed March 19, 2019 .
  15. ↑ ELEVATED ROAD TO OPEN IN BRONX; 2.4-Mile Viaduct Will Help Speed ​​Bruckner Traffic to New England Area. New York Times, October 18, 1962, accessed March 19, 2019 .
  16. ↑ Frank J. Prial: The Bruckner Interchange Open at Last. New York Times, December 21, 1972, accessed March 19, 2019 .
  17. ^ Interstate 278 / New Jersey, New York. In: interstate-guide.com. Retrieved March 18, 2019 .
  18. ↑ Facts and Info: Goethals Bridge. Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, accessed March 19, 2019 .
  19. ↑ 2016 Monthly Traffic and Percent of E-ZPass Usage on the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey website with one-way traffic (PDF).
  20. ↑ Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge: Historic Overview. NYCroads, accessed March 19, 2019 .
  21. ↑ Kosciuszko Bridge Names by Major for Hero of 1776. Brooklyn Eagle , September 23, 1940, accessed March 19, 2019 .
  22. ↑ David W. Dunalp: 3 New Bridges Rise in New York, With Looks That Could Stop Traffic. New York Times, April 27, 2017, accessed March 19, 2019 .
  23. ^ New York bridge renamed for Robert F. Kennedy. USAToday, November 19, 2008, accessed March 19, 2019 .