Jonathan_Horsley

I am starting a new job on monday in Tarrytown, NY and am having some commute problems. I live in staten Island and it seems no matter which commute I decide to take, the tolls and the traffic are equally bad. On the one hand, I can take the the New Jersey route through the GWB or I can go through manhattan. I am really trying to find the best route that I can get there the quickest without traffic and limiting the tolls that I pay. Any helps is appreciated.

Thanks

nytraveler

Not sure where you are in Staten Island - but that is one hell of a commute. I used to commute to Westchester from Manhattan and taking the West Side highway to the Henry Hudson into the Saw mill was my best option - since I was going against most traffic. (That commute - from W 96th St was about 40 minutes - and I'm NOT a slow driver. I would guess you may be looking at 2 hours each way.)

But how to get from SI to the West Side Highway is mystery to me.

doug_stallings

There's no way to avoid the tolls, but I suspect if you take the Goethals over the Verrazano Narrows bridge you'll save money. Tarrytown is close to the Tappen Zee Bridge, which doesn't have a huge toll. If you can get to the Palisades Parkway without paying a huge toll or getting too stuck in traffic, then take that up to the Tappen Zee. I think that's going to be your best bet. But I can't speak to the traffic. I know there are tolls in the NJ Turnpike, but I can't imagine they will be more than 2 bridge tolls. But I would not take the GWB or drive through Manhattan unless there's no other option.

And I would also say that I don't think the Bayonne Bridge is a realistic option since you probably have to work your way back to I-95 anyway.

Anyway you look at it, it's a bad commute, though.

nyer

I agree that this is a bad commute no matter what.

Re Doug's comment
"I know there are tolls in the NJ Turnpike, but I can't imagine they will be more than 2 bridge tolls."

I also don't know the details but I can tell you that NJ turnpike tolls have gone way up (and no E-Z pass discount anymore unless your pass is issued by NJ) Also Staten Island residents used to get a big break on the Verrazano, so the cost of tolls might be closer than one would think

HowardR

In simple terms, there is no satisfactory solution to your travel problem. I hate to sound so negative, but that's the reality of the situation.
As for Doug's suggestion about the Tappen Zee Bridge, assuming you're commuting at the normal times, you'll hit a lot of traffic on the bridge coming into Tarrytown in the morning and a lot going out in the evening. And, there are major backups of traffic with some regularity.
Have you thought of moving closer to Tarrytown?

nytraveler

Isn't there some sort of tunnel from Brooklyn to Manhattan? Is there any way to use that to get to the far west side - and then it's not such a bad run up/

I would think the Tappan Zee would be hellish then - and you would be making a sort of giant circle to approach from the west rather than the south.

And I don't think there is any way to avoid significant tolls - no matter how you go.

Where are you on Staten Island - and what is your easiest/fastest way to get off?

nytraveler

Yahoo maps says there is a way for the trip to take an hour - but I would suggest that is probably in the middle of the night. I would do yahoo maps with exact addresses (and perhaps google the same) and then look at parameters you can vary to see what the options are.

Or perhaps hopstop.com might go as far as Tarrytown.

Ackislander

What about getting to Metro North and taking the train. Of course, I don't know how you would get from SI to Metro North!

nytraveler

The problem with MetroNorth is that the train station is not near most of the office complexes - and you would likelyneed a car or cb from the train station in Tarrytown to the office.

When I first got a job in Westchester I didn't have a car - and commuted by train for several weeks (at 1.5 hours each way for someone already in Manhattan) until I got a car and cut it back to about 40 minutes.