Interstate 287
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Interstate 287 (abbreviated I-287) is a major interstate highway in New Jersey and New York. It is a partial beltway around New York City, serving the northern half of New Jersey as well as the counties of Rockland and Westchester in New York. I-287 follows a roughly horseshoe-shaped route. Both of its termini are located at Interstate 95. The route through New Jersey is sometimes referred to as the Middlesex Freeway.
Similar to what still exists today with the New Jersey portion of Interstate 95, Interstate 287 was long disjointed due to community opposition. The New York stretch effectively ended at Suffern, and the New Jersey portion at U.S. Route 202 near Boonton, with a long gap between. Finally, by the late 1980s, construction commenced, with this missing section opening in November, 1993.
Major cities
Bolded cities are officially-designated control cities for signs.- Perth Amboy, New Jersey (via Route 440)
- Morristown, New Jersey
- Mahwah, New Jersey
- Suffern, New York
- Tappan Zee Bridge, New York
- White Plains, New York
- Rye, New York
Route descripton
New York
Working counter-clockwise, it begins in Port Chester, New York at the New England Thruway (Interstate 95). It is also called the Cross-Westchester Expressway until the New York State Thruway merge. Once merged with the westbound Thruway (and northbound Interstate 87), it crosses the Tappan Zee Bridge over the Hudson River between Tarrytown and Nyack, and continues west to Suffern. It then leaves the Thruway (and Interstate 87) and crosses the New Jersey border.New Jersey
It then bears southwest in New Jersey, intersecting Interstate 80 near Parsippany. It continues further south, through Morristown and eventually to Bedminster Township, where it intersects Interstate 78. The highway then curves southeast, heading towards Perth Amboy. The I-287 signage ends at its interchange with the New Jersey Turnpike (Interstate 95); however, the roadway continues as Route 440 towards Staten Island.Exit list
New Jersey| Exit | Road | Destination | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Route continues as northbound
NJ 440. | |||
| (0) |
 I-95 (New Jersey Turnpike) Exit 10
| Trenton-Philadelphia, Newark-New York | |
| 1A-B |
US 1/CR 531 | Trenton, Newark | |
| 2A-B |
NJ 27 (Lincoln Highway) | Metuchen, New Brunswick | Northbound Exit Only, Southbound Entry Only |
| 3 | CR 501 (New Durham Road) | Southbound Exit Only, Northbound Entry Only | |
| 4 | Durham Ave | South Plainfield | Northbound Exit Only, Southbound Entry Only |
| 5 | CR 529 (Stelton Road) | Edison | |
| 6 | Washington Ave | Piscataway | Northbound/Southbound Exit, Northbound Entry Only |
| 7 | South Randolphville Rd | Piscataway, Middlesex | |
| 8 | Possumtown Rd | Middlesex, Highland Park | Northbound Exit Only, Northbound Entry Only |
| 8 | Centennial Ave | Middlesex, Highland Park | Southbound Exit Only, Southbound Entry Only |
| 9 | Spur CR 514 (River Road) | Middlesex, New Brunswick | |
| 10 | CR 527 (Easton Avenue) | ||
| 12 | Weston Canal Rd | ||
| 13 |
NJ 28 (Union Ave) | Somerville, Middlesex | Split into 13A/B Northbound |
| 14A |
US 22 East | New York | |
| 14B |
US 22 West to US 202/US 206 South | Northbound Exit Only. | |
| 17 |
US 202/US 206 South to US 22 West | Somerville, Flemington | Southbound Exit Only. |
| 21 |
Interstate 78 Exit 29 | Allentown, New York City | |
| 22A-B |
US 202/US 206 | Pluckmein, Bedminster, Netcong | |
| 26A-B | CR 525 (Mt. Airy Road) | Basking Ridge, Liberty Corner, Bernardsville | |
| 30A | North Maple Ave | Basking Ridge | |
| 30B |
US 202 | ||
| 33 | Harter Rd | Jockey Hollow | |
| 34 | James St | Morristown | |
| 35 |
NJ 124 (South St), Madison Ave | Morristown | |
| 36A-B | CR 510 Morris Avenue/Lafayette Avenue | Morristown | |
| 37 |
NJ 24 East | Springfield | |
| 39 |
NJ 10 | The Oranges, Netcong | |
| 40 | CR 511 | Parsippany | |
| 41 |
Interstate 80 Exit 43 | Delaware Water Gap, New York | |
| 42 |
US 46/US 202 South | Dover | |
| 43 | Intervale Rd | Mountain Lakes | |
| 44 | Main St | Boonton | |
| 45 | Woonton St | Boonton | |
| 47 |
US 202 (Main Rd) | ||
| 52 |
NJ 23 | Butler, Wayne | |
| 53 | Alt CR 511 (Paterson-Hamburg Turnpike) | ||
| 55 | CR 511, Alt CR 511 (Ringwood Avenue) | ||
| 57 | Skyline Drive, West Oakland Avenue | ||
| 58 |
US 202 (Ramapo Valley Rd) | Oakland | |
| 59 |
NJ 208 South | Franklin Lakes | |
| 66 |
NJ 17 South | Mahwah | Shared alignment splits southbound, joins northbound. |
Route continues north (co-signed with
NJ 17) into New York. NJ 17 becomes | |||
New York
| Exit | Road | Destination | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Route continues south (co-signed with  NY 17) into New Jersey. NY 17 becomes
NJ 17. | |||
| (0) | NY 17
| Hillburn, Suffern | Shared alignment splits northbound, joins southbound. |
Route joins
Interstate 87 (New York Thruway) at Exit 15.Then route exits Thruway at Exit 8 and becomes Cross-Westchester Expressway. | |||
| SPEED LIMIT 55 | |||
| 1 |  NY-119 (White Plains Road)
| Tarrytown | connects to
Saw Mill Parkway northbound from eastbound |
| 2 |
NY-9A (Saw Mill River Road) | Elmsford | Westbound Exit Only - Entrance both directions |
| 3 N-S |
Sprain Brook Pkwy | New York - Albany | Northbound Sprain only accessible from Westbound I-287. East-to-north traffic should use the Saw Mill (at Exit 1) to the Taconic. |
| 4 |  NY-100A (Knollwood Road)
| Hartsdale | |
| 5 |
NY-100/NY-119 (Tarrytown Road)
| White Plains | Eastbound Exit Only |
| 5 |
NY-100 (Hillside Avenue) | Hawthorne - White Plains | Westbound Exit Only. No Entrance, Use NY-119 Entrance. |
| 6 |
NY-22 (North Broadway) | White Plains - Scarsdale | |
| 7 | TO
Bronx River Pkwy/Taconic State Pkwy | North White Plains | Westbound Exit Only |
| 8 W-E | NY-119 (Westchester Avenue)
| White Plains-Harrison | Eastbound Exit Only |
| 8 | NY-119 (Westchester Avenue)
| White Plains-Harrison | Westbound Exit Only |
| 9A |
I-684 North | Brewster | |
| 9 N-S |
Hutchinson River Pkwy | S.New York City (Long Island/Queens/Brooklyn) Via Whitestone Bridge - N. Merritt Parkway CT State Highway 15 | |
| 10 |  NY-120 (Purchase Street) NY-120A (Westchester Avenue)
| Rye - Port Chester | |
| 11 |
US-1 (Boston Post Road) | Rye - Port Chester | Eastbound Exit Only |
| 12 |
I-95 South | New York | Keep Right |
| SPEED LIMIT 55 | |||
Eastbound traffic defaults onto
I-95 North to Bridgeport - New Haven | |||
Length
- New Jersey: 67.54 miles (108.7 km)
- New York: 31.11 miles (50.06 km)
- *Overlap with Route 17: 0.65 miles
- *New York State Thruway mainline: 19.13 miles
- *Cross Westchester Expressway: 11.33 miles
Spur routes
| [http://encycl.opentopia.com/ edit ] Auxiliary routes of Interstate 87
|
Notes
Interstate 287 holds an unusual distinction of being a multi-state three-digit interstate whose parent is an intrastate two-digit interstate.
In New Jersey, the 287 freeway is an important highway that links Mahwah to the New Jersey Turnpike in Edison Township. There is one problem with the freeway: congestion. The portion that traverses through Bedminster and Bridgewater is notorious for traffic congestion brought on in part by the presence of many corporate headquarters situated near the highway. Particularly during rush hour, traffic can become extremely heavy. In due time, the highway is expected to see some improvements in the Bridgewater area. The exit for US 202-206 will be upgraded eventually.
The entire New York section is operated by the New York State Thruway Authority, although only the section shared with I-87 is part of the mainline Thruway. The rest of the NY section is called the Cross-Westchester Expressway. No tolls exist on this portion, and signs mentioning the Thruway Authority are rare along its length. This arrangement is similar to that of Interstate 84 in New York.
It is interesting to note that both ends of I-287 are at Interstate 95, yet its parent route is Interstate 87.
In New York, Thruway exits 8 and 8A and Cross-Westchester Expressway exit 1 are now combined in one interchange. Formerly, there were two separate interchanges: Thruway interchange 8, to the Cross-Westchester, and Cross-Westchester exit 1 (Saw Mill River Parkway to/from north only (use Thruway interchange 7A for to/from south), with access only to/from west (use interchange 3 for access to/from the east)). Due to the recent rebuilding of interchange 8, all traffic from I-287 east must remain on the Thruway beyond point where I-287 leaves it and exit at 8A, which leads to what appears to be a service road for the CWX, but ends up leading to the Saw Mill. However, to reach I-287 west from the Saw Mill south, you merge with I-287 before merging with the Thruway (no 8A).
Past Plans
I-287 was to continue past I-95 in Port Chester and was to cross Long Island Sound via the (unbuilt) Oyster Bay-Rye Bridge and absorb the Seaford Oyster Bay Expressway (NY 135). Then, I-287 was again to be extended into Jones Beach by merging with the Wantagh Parkway in Merrick. These plans were dropped as a result of community opposition and environmental concerns. Evidence of this exists at the northern end of NY 135 at exit 14 (NY 25) where there is an incomplete cloverleaf interchange and the southern end at exit 1 where there is a non-conventional interchange with Merrick Road.The Missing Link
I-287's uncompleted section between Mahwah and Montville was the source of a great deal of controversy dating back at least to 1965, and continuing on through its opening in 1993. Property owners along the proposed route fought its completion as part of the freeway revolts of the 1960s and 1970s. Eventually, a route was agreed upon and permits allowing construction to begin were issued in 1988. However, officials in Rockland County, New York, filed a lawsuit on November 19, 1993, hours before the highway's official ribbon-cutting, seeking to block its opening, claiming the incompete interchange with the New York State Thruway was inadequate to handle the additional traffic. That interchange was not completed until late the following year, but the highway nevertheless opened as planned.It was widely speculated in New Jersey at the time that then-Governor James Florio sought the highway's premature unveiling to bolster his ultimately unsuccessful re-election campaign. Ultimately, however, the opening did not occur until over two weeks following the gubernatorial election, negating any impact it may have had.
Future plans
Due to the congestion along I-287 and the slow decay of the Tappan Zee Bridge, talks have begun regarding the possibility of replacing the bridge. A variety of transportation improvements are currently being considered, including a commuter rail system that would link the western shore of the Hudson River with Westchester County and New York City. Several alternatives are being considered to replace the bridge[I-287 Proposed Alternatives], accessed July 12, 2006. Currently, the favored alternative is a cable stayed span.References
Sources
- 2005 Rand McNally Road Atlas
- "Missing Link of Interstate Opens, Despite Lawsuit." The New York Times, November 20, 1993. Metropolitan Desk, p. 26.
External links
- [Interstate 287 in New Jersey] Straight Line Diagram from the New Jersey Department of Transportation
- [Highway Heaven]
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