My husand and I are planning a business trip to Brookhaven National Lab on Long Island. We will be traveling in January. I have mapped our route with Google Map. It appears that we take a couple of freeways through and/or around (?) New York to get to Long Island. We are from the Chicago area so we deal with that type of traffic but have never been to New York City. I-95 N, I-295 S and I-495 E are the expressways. Does this bypass the city or go through the city and will it be congested at all times or just at rush hours? Any help would be appreciated.

The first question is where will you be coming FROM?

Secondly, there are no "freeways" in Manhattan.

All roads in New York are congested except in the middle of the night.

And to bypass the city you would have to do a detour of about 100 miles - it really doesn't pay.

The route you have picked is limited access higways - but right through the center of the city - and will be very busy. This route is the most direct - but the middle section (Cross Bronx) is a real bear - esp if they're doing construction.

I would use a different route - but would not reco it for someone not familiar with NYC (since you have to be ready to take one of several side roads depending on conditions).

Your best bet is to have several alternate routes mapped out - then start listening to traffic radio about 50 miles out - so if there's a disaster in one place (often one of the Hudson River Crossings) you can change plans to avoid it.

For simplicity your route is easiest. For least traffic, time - only the traffic gods know on any specific day.

Everything around the city is congested all the time. That said, some are worse than others. They are "freeways", in the sense that you do not have to pay to use the road, but you do have to pay for most bridge crossings, and the highways do not look like modern freeways, and you cannot move freely upon them. What particular route were you looking at? Whatever you choose, the less driving in Manhattan you try to do the happier you will be.

If you are driving from anywhere west, you can avoid driving through Manhattan or not, as you chose. I 95 will take you across Manhattan at the north end and thru the Bronx. Your other option is to avoid Manhattan by taking the Verranzano bridge

Are you driving from Chicago? We used to drive from Detroit to my family's house near Brookhaven. We would just take I80 to the George Washington Bridge to the Cross Bronx Expressway to the Throgs Neck Bridge and then the Cross Island to the LI Expressway (LIE, I495). Sorry - having grown up there, I always remember the names, but not the numbers. You can take the LIE to the Wm Floyd Parkway and head north. You'll see signs for Brookhaven Lab.

Not that there is a good time (except maybe early Sunday morning), but it may be easier to get through the city around mid-day. As NYTraveler pointed out, you need to monitor the traffic and have alternates - like the Lincoln Tunnel to the Mid-Town Tunnel to the Grand Central, etc. Of course, with all the construction and traffic around Chicago these days, you will probably feel right at home! Good luck.

Also forgot to mention... the highways may be free, but the bridges and tunnels aren't and you have two of them to cross to get to LI.

OK, wrong choice of words. Expressway?? I realize we will be paying tolls. Have you been through Chicago? Lots of tolls.

We will start from Cleveland on the day we plan to arrive on LI, I-80 E.

After we complete our business on LI, we will be heading to New Hampshire. Using Google Map it suggests using the ferry to New London CT. Since this does not sound like much fun (driving through the city) would it be feasible to stay somewhere in CT, take the ferry to LI and not have to deal with the drive through NYC. Would this be the 100 miles out of the way option?

I see the option of using the Verrazano Bridge. Is that the best choice for non-New Yorkers? I have a map which looks like that is very south compared to the route I mentioned in my first post.


BarbaraJ, the route you have taken sounds like the one Google Map suggested or similar. Yes?

Thanks for all the help.

For Brookhaven, the George Washington Bridge is better than the Verranzano. Either way you may hit major traffic...The Cross Bronx can be terrible, but if you go over the Verranzano you end up on the Belt Pkwy and that is worse, IMHO. I would say to try to be at the bridge between late morning and early afternoon or as someone else suggested, Sunday morning.

susieqq is right. the george washington bridge would be best.
avoid the verrazano, the belt parkway, the holland tunnel, etc...
then, simply take I-495 or the Long Island Expressway all the way out to William Floyd Parkway. The lab is just north of Exit 68. And to give you an idea, the exits right out of New York start in the teens, so it will be around a 2 hour ride, once you leave the east side of New York, a bit longer of course from the George Washington Bridge, because you have to get through New York. I grew up just 4 exits east of the lab. ;-)

additionally, yes the orient point-new london ferry would be most convenient to get to new hampshire from brookhaven.

it can certainly be an option for the way there as well, and not too much "out of the way." the ferry is definitely relaxing etc...but, I-95 in connecticut is no treat either. either way you slice it, you have to fend your way through the nyc metropolitan area.

Yes it is possible to stay on CT and take ferries to and from BNL, if this is within your & $-).
One ferry leaves from Bridgeport, CT and arrives at Port Jefferson, NY. This option will most likely take longer and cost more $-) than driving from Cleveland on I-80 through NYC 95(GW bridge)to 295 Throgs Neck Bridge & Clearview Expressway and then taking the 495 (LIE) as otto & Barbara have indicated.
http://www.bpjferry.com/Schedules.aspx

The other ferry, as you mentioned, leaves from New London and arrives at Orient Point. This is a better option if leaving from BNL to go to New Hampshire. Be sure to reserve in advance https://www.longislandferry.com/Default.asp if you plan on taking ferry.

Going all the way out through CT (that highway too will be packed with traffic) is not the way to save time. It works fine if you;re going to New England - but not for Long Island.

The route you have is direct and will probably not be much longer than alternates - unless there is a hideous crash or something.

The key is to time your trip through NYC to avoid rush hours (7 to 10 am and 4 to 7 pm). You'll still hit a lot of traffic - but it probably won;t be stop and go for 30 miles as it would in rush hour.

RATSAJ - The google map sounds like the GW Bridge, Throgsneck,etc. Also, if you have a AAA card, you can do maps on their web site and they show you where all the construction is. Basically, it will be like driving in Chicago.

On a good day, it would take us about 90 minutes from Northern NJ out to Rocky Point, which is just west of BNL. Then again, I had days when it took me 3 hours.

The Orient Point to New London Ferry is a great trip. Of course, I'm not sure you can appreciate it in January, but it does beat driving around. When I lived in Boston I took the ferry all the time. It was (and may still be) reservation only. Then again, in January it shouldn't be a problem. It's a nice drive from BNL to Orient Point. If you have some time, stop by some of the wineries out there. Some very nice wines.

Then again... you can always fly into Islip and rent a car - that would get you around the city.

Just out of curiousity.... what do you do that you'll be visiting BNL?

I agree with all the advice you've gotten. I'd just add I 95 in Ct. is just awful, awful, awful ALL the time. That and the Belt Pkwy. are, imo, the worst of the roads you're considering.

The ferry ride is not bad, but it is relatively expensive and can be problematic if the weather's bad. I also don't know how frequently it runs in Jan. You might also consider the Port Jefferson to Bridgeport ferry instead. It's not as far east, but it will get you across LI Sound and then you could head north. It may run more frequently. It also depends on how much time you have b/w the stops and whether you're interested in doing any sightseeing. Taking the ferry from Orient Point would allow you to visit some vineyards on the North Fork of LI if you want or even the Hamptons on the South Fork.