Interstate 678

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Interstate 678 Auxiliary route of the Interstate Highway System
Van Wyck Expressway Whitestone Expressway Bronx-Whitestone Bridge
Length:	14 mi (23 km)
Formed:	1971
South end:	JFK Int'l Airport in Queens
Major junctions:	NY 878 at Exit 1 Belt Pkwy at Exit 1 Grand Central Pkwy and J Robinson Pkwy at Exit 10 I-495 at Exit 12 NY-25A at Exit 13 Cross Island Pkwy at Exit 16
North end:	Bruckner Interchange in the Bronx
Numbered highways in New York < NY 635 I-684 > Interstates - U.S. Routes - State Routes

Interstate 678 (abbreviated I-678) is a north-south spur route in the Interstate Highway System that runs 14 miles (23 km) entirely within two boroughs of New York City: Queens and the Bronx.

Interstate 678 is more commonly referred to by New Yorkers as the Van Wyck Expressway (or just "the Van Wyck"), and is named for Robert A. Van Wyck, the first mayor of New York City after the five boroughs were combined into one city, from 1898-1901. The Van Wyck Expressway is the roadway's locally-designated name for most of its route. Interstate 678 runs from a southern terminus at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK) and continues north across the Bronx Whitestone Bridge to a northern terminus at the Bruckner Interchange in the Bronx, which connects I-678 to Interstate 95 and Interstate 278. Interstate 678 also interchanges with Interstate 495, the Long Island Expressway.

North of Northern Boulevard (Exit 13) in northern Queens, Interstate 678 is designated as the Whitestone Expressway. This section of I-678 has its origins in the Whitestone Parkway, which was built at the same time as the Bronx Whitestone Bridge so as to service it. North of the Bronx Whitestone Bridge, it follows a section of what was once the Hutchinson River Parkway. Both of these sections were converted to Interstate Highway standards in the early 1960s to allow for commercial traffic and given its Interstate designation when the conversion was completed. The Van Wyck Expressway soon linked to it, and this section became part of I-678 in 1971 after the planned Astoria Expressway was cancelled. Although I-678 ends northbound at the Bruckner Interchange, the highway itself continues beyond the interchange as the Hutchinson River Parkway to the Connecticut state line, though commercial traffic is not allowed beyond this point.

Interstate 678 is known for its frequent traffic jams.

Portions of the AirTrain run on elevated tracks above I-678 south of exit 5 (Atlantic Avenue). The AirTrain is a light rail system connecting JFK Airport to Jamaica Station, a major transfer point on the Long Island Rail Road with frequent rail connections to Manhattan.

While designated as a three-digit interstate spur route, I-678 never intersects with its obstensible "parent" interstate, Interstate 78. Plans had existed to have Interstate 78 continue through New York City from its current terminus at the Holland Tunnel and along the (unbuilt) Lower Manhattan Expressway, over the Williamsburg Bridge, onto the Bushwick Expressway to the southern end of I-678 and continue up an extended Clearview Expressway.

[edit] Exit List

Number	Destinations	Notes
John F. Kennedy International Airport boundary. I-678 feeds directly into/from JFK Expressway.
1	NY 878/Nassau Expressway
1A	Belt Parkway East NY 27/South Conduit Avenue	Northbound Exit Only
1B	Belt Parkway West NY 27/North Conduit Avenue	Northbound Exit Only
1E	Belt Parkway East NY 27/South Conduit Avenue	Southbound Exit Only
1W	Belt Parkway West NY 27/North Conduit Avenue	Southbound Exit Only
2	Rockaway Boulevard
3	Linden Boulevard
4	Liberty Avenue
5	Atlantic Avenue
6	Jamaica Avenue Hillside Avenue
7	Jackie Robinson Parkway	Southbound exit only
8	Main Street Union Turnpike
9	Queens Boulevard	Northbound exit only
10	Grand Central Parkway West LaGuardia Airport Interstate 278/Triborough Bridge	Northbound exit only
11	Harry Van Arsdale Jr. Avenue Jewel Avenue 69th Road
12A	I-495/Long Island Expressway East Eastern Long Island College Point Boulevard
12B	I-495/Long Island Expressway West Queens-Midtown Tunnel
13	NY 25A/Northern Boulevard Astoria Boulevard Grand Central Parkway West LaGuardia Airport Interstate 278/Triborough Bridge
South of here I-678 is known as the Van Wyck Expressway. North of here it's known as the Whitestone Expressway.
14	Linden Place
15	20th Avenue
16	Cross Island Parkway
17	3rd Avenue (Northbound) 14th Avenue (Southbound)	Exit 17 is an unofficial designation. Northbound exit is the last exit before toll.
Bronx-Whitestone Bridge.
	Lafayette Avenue
	Interstate 95 Interstate 278 West	The Bruckner Interchange. All trucks must exit.
I-678 feeds directly into/from Hutchinson River Parkway.

[edit] Legal Definition

Most of I-678 is defined as part of Interstate Route Connector 515 in New York Highway Law § 340-a.

	edit Auxiliary routes of Interstate 78
	Current and Future (F)	Former
	New Jersey/New York
	New York
	New York
	New York

[edit] External links

• Interstate 678 at interstate-guide.com
• Van Wyck Expressway: Historic Overview