New York State Route 25A
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| NY Route 25A |
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| Length: | 72.91 mi[1] (117.34 km) | ||||||||||||
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| West end: |  I-495 in Queens |
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| Major junctions: |
 Cross Island in Queens Sunken Meadow in Fort Salonga |
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| East end: |  NY 25 in Calverton |
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| Counties: | Queens, Nassau, Suffolk | ||||||||||||
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New York State Route 25A is a New York State highway and the main East-West route for most of the North Shore of Long Island, running from the Queens Midtown Tunnel in the New York City borough of Queens at its western terminus to Calverton in Suffolk County at its eastern end.
Known for its scenic route through decidedly lesser-developed areas such as Brookville, Fort Salonga, and the Roslyn Viaduct, 25A begins as 21st Street in Long Island City. As you go farther through 25A, it is then known as Jackson Avenue for a short period and is variously named Northern Boulevard east of Queens Plaza (New York State Route 25), North Hempstead Turnpike, Main Street, Fort Salonga Road, and North Country Road. It merges with New York State Route 25 for approximately 1.5 miles in Smithtown.
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[edit] Route description
NYS Route 25A begins at its Western terminus at Exit 13 (which is the first exit) off Interstate 495 (the Long Island Expressway). Route 25A is known in this area as 21st Street. As you follow 25A, it becomes Jackson Avenue and is a 4-lane road (and remains a 4-lane road well into Nassau County). Just past the intersection with Queens Boulevard (State Route 25), at the foot of the Queensboro Bridge, 25A becomes Northern Boulevard.
[edit] Through Queens
25A carries the Northern Boulevard name through Jackson Heights, Flushing, Bayside, Douglaston and Little Neck in Queens. 25A intersects with the Grand Central Parkway on the Jackson Heights/Flushing border. It continues east past Shea Stadium, through downtown Flushing and then towards Bayside, where it intersects with the Clearview Expressway (Interstate 295). Further east towards Douglaston and Little Neck, it crosses over the Cross Island Parkway and into Nassau County.
[edit] Nassau
25A, still carrying the Northern Boulevard name, crosses into Nassau County at Lake Success. It winds its way around a steep curve into Manhasset and the "Miracle Mile" shopping area. It intersects with New York State Route 101 just south of Port Washington and then splits. Old Northern Boulevard (which once carried the 25A designation) is the old route which passes through the village of Roslyn. Northern Boulevard itself bypasses the village and carries 25A over the Roslyn Viaduct into Greenvale and then to Brookville, where the route passes the New York Institute of Technology and the C.W. Post Campus of Long Island University before intersecting with New York State Route 107.
After Route 107, 25A intersects with New York State Route 106 and quickly loses 2 lanes and becomes a simple 2-lane country road. Just past Cold Spring Road, it returns to a 4-lane road and then crosses the Suffolk County line and intersects with New York State Route 108.
[edit] Northern Boulevard, or North Hempstead Turnpike
At its intersection with State Route 106, some feel Northern Boulevard becomes North Hempstead Turnpike (and there are in fact one or two North Hempstead Turnpike signs along the route east of Route 106.) However, there are signs as far east as Cove Road in Oyster Bay Cove that show the designation is still Northern Boulevard. The last sign for Northern Boulevard is just before Cold Spring Road, near the Nassau/Suffolk line, so a case can be made that Northern Boulevard extends from Queens, all the way across Nassau, and on to the Suffolk line.
[edit] Suffolk County
25A makes a sharp left turn just at its intersection with New York State Route 108. It travels through Cold Spring Harbor before turing somewhat south and into downtown Huntington, where it regains 4-lane status through the village and is known as Main Street. At the intersection of County Road 35 on the east side of Huntington, 25A (still designated Main Street) becomes a 2-lane road and heads toward Centerport, where it becomes Fort Salonga Road through Centerport, Northport and Fort Salonga. 25A intersects with its first limited-access highway since the Cross Island Parkway back in Queens when it encounters the Sunken Meadow State Parkway. It also changes names from Fort Salonga Road to Main Street as it enters Kings Park, home to the now-closed Kings Park Psychiatric Center.
25A makes a right turn at an intersection in San Remo (just east of Kings Park) and becomes St. Johnland Road. It heads further south towards Smithtown, where it intersects with New York State Route 25 (Jericho Turnpike), State Route 25 and 25A run concurrently through the village of Smithtown. Just past Edgewood Avenue in Smithtown, 25/25A loses the Jericho Turnpike name and the road is known as Main Street. On the east end of the village, at the intersection of 25/25A and New York State Route 111, the roads split. Route 111 heads to the South Shore of Long Island, 25 continues east and 25A heads on a north east path towards St. James and Stony Brook.
From Smithtown to Stony Brook, 25A is known as North Country Road. It passes the old Stony Brook village before making a right to head due east towards SUNY Stony Brook. It intersects with County Road 97 (Nicoll's Road) and then passes through Setauket and into Port Jefferson (where it is known as West Broadway). Once 25A reaches the harbor, it makes a right turn and passes through the village of Port Jefferson (known again as Main Street.) Further south, at the intersection with New York State Route 112, 25A makes a sharp left turn and heads along Hallock Avenue towards its intersection with New York State Route 347 (Nesconset Highway). 25A almost literally "takes over" 347 at this point, becoming a wide highway (wider than at any other point) before intersecting with County Road 83 (Patchogue-Mount Sinai Road) and passing through Mount Sinai before splitting again and bypassing Rocky Point (as it did back in Roslyn.) The old section (without state designation) passes through the village while 25A continues towards Shoreham and intersecting with County Road 46 (William Floyd Parkway) before coming to a fork. 25A veers right and heads southeast, while Sound Avenue, the other end of the fork, heads due east towards the North Fork of Long Island. It is not long after this split (about 1.5 miles) that 25A ends at Route 25, in Calverton, just west of Riverhead.
[edit] Communities along the route
[edit] Major intersections
| County | Location | Mile | Road(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Queens | Long Island City | 0.0 | I-495 |
Exit 13 (Long Island Expressway). |
| 0.9 | NY 25 |
Queens Boulevard | ||
| Jackson Heights | 3.1 |  I-278 |
Exit 38 (Brooklyn Queens Expressway). | |
| Corona | 5.4 |  Grand Central |
Exits 9 E-W (Grand Central Parkway). | |
| Flushing | 6.3 |  I-678 |
Exits 13 E-W (Whitestone Expressway). | |
| Bayside | 10.0 |  I-295 |
Exit 5 (Clearview Expressway). | |
| Douglaston | 10.9 | Cross Island |
Exits 31 E-W (Cross Island Parkway). | |
| Nassau | Flower Hill | 16.5 |  NY 101 |
Southern terminus of NY 101. |
| Brookville | 21.2 |  NY 107 |
Cedar Swamp Road. | |
| East Norwich | 24.4 |  NY 106 |
Jericho-Oyster Bay Road. | |
| Oyster Bay Cove |  NY 135 |
Formerly proposed Seaford-Oyster Bay Expressway. | ||
| Suffolk | Cold Spring Harbor | 28.4 |  NY 108 |
Northern terminus of NY 108. |
 Caumsett |
Formerly proposed Caumsett State Parkway. | |||
| Huntington | 31.2 |  NY 110 |
New York Avenue. | |
| 31.9 |  CR 35 |
Park Avenue. | ||
| Greenlawn | 34.5 |  CR 9 |
Greenlawn Road and Cuba Hill Road | |
| Northport |  NY 231 |
Formerly proposed Babylon-Northport Expressway. | ||
| Kings Park | 41.2 | Sunken Meadow |
Exits SM5 E-W (Sunken Meadow). Last exit for Sunken Meadow State Parkway & Entrance to Sunken Meadow State Park. | |
 CR 11 |
Pulaski Road | |||
| Smithtown | 45.9 | NY 25 |
West end of NY 25-NY 25A duplex. Site of the Smithtown Bull. | |
| Village of the Branch | 47.3 |  NY 111 |
Northern terminus of NY 111. Shared intersection with east end of NY 25-25A concurrency. | |
| 47.3 | NY 25 |
Shared intersection with NY 111. | ||
| Stony Brook | 53.7 |  CR 97 |
Nicoll's Road. | |
| Port Jefferson Station | 58.6 |  NY 112 |
Northern terminus of NY 112, although multiplex was planned. | |
| Mount Sinai | 59.8 |  NY 347 |
Eastern terminus of NY 347. | |
 CR 111 |
Formerly proposed Port Jefferson-Westhampton Beach Road. | |||
| 60.8 |  CR 83 |
Patchogue-Mount Sinai Road. | ||
| East Shoreham | 67.9 |  CR 46 |
William Floyd Parkway. | |
| Wading River |  CR 25 |
Wading River Road. | ||
| Calverton | 72.9 | NY 25 |
Main Road. |
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crossing, no access | Concurrency termini | Decommissioned | Unconstructed | Closed | |
[edit] History
[edit] Former sections
There are segments of local streets that were part of the original Route 25A. These streets consist of local village downtown blocks and even residential streets. Segments like the Roslyn Viaduct, for example allow traffic to flow more freely over Roslyn Harbor, while the historic community below is preserved intact. The towns listed below contain the following former Route 25A segments.
- Roslyn:
- Old Northern Boulevard.
- East Broadway, from Old Northern Boulevard to School Street (Eastbound On-Ramp), and Witte Lane (Westbound Off-Ramp).
- Main Street, between two parts of Old Northern Boulevard.
- School Street.
- Witte Lane.
- Huntington - Cold Spring Harbor:
- Lawrence Hill Road between Harbor Road (New York State Routes 25A & 108), & North Hempstead Turnpike (Route 25A) to West Main Street (New York State Route 25A) & Hillside Avenue.
- Huntington:
- Old Northport Road between Woodruff Court & Huntington Crescent Club.
- Centerport:
- Between Little Neck Road (former Suffolk CR 86) & Centershore Road.
- Northport:
- Main Street from Fort Salonga Road to Woodbine Avenue & Bayview Avenue.
- Woodbine Avenue from Fort Salonga Road to Main Street & Bayview Avenue.
- Fort Salonga:
- Between Tanyard Place & east of Sunken Meadow Road.
- Just east of the intersection of Route 25A & Sunken Meadow Road is a side street that parallels 25A for approximately 1/4 mile named Old 25A.
- Kings Park:
- Unknown, however according to some old maps, Main Street between Pulaski Road and St. Johnsland Road is called "New Highway." More research is needed.
- Smithtown - Saint James:
- Edgewood Avenue (former Suffolk CR 87).
- Setauket:
- Ridgeway Avenue, from North Country Road & Main Street, to current Route 25A.
- North Country Road from Bennet's Road to Ridgeway Avenue & Main Street.
- Main Street, from Ridgeway Avenue & North Country Road to Old Town Road & current Route 25A.
- Port Jefferson:
- East Broadway from Main Street & West Broadway to East Main Street.
- East Main Street, between Main Street & East Broadway.
- Port-Jefferson Station-Sound Beach:
- North Country Road (Suffolk CR 20), from Main Street & Sheep Pasture Road to a baseball field west of Westchester Avenue, on current Route 25A.
- Shoreham - Wading River:
- North Country Road.
- Wading River - Mattituck:
- Sound Avenue from Current Route 25A to Main Road (New York State Route 25).
[edit] Bypasses
Besides the Roslyn Viaduct and the Rocky Point Bypass, other attempts to realign Route 25A were planned by the New York State Department of Transportation. However public opposition thwarted these projects, out of fear that they would lower property values, and bring more traffic jams and rampant development. The proposed bypasses include:
- North Shore Expressway (Lloyd Harbor-Kings Park): From Syosset-Cold Spring Road to Main Street running mostly along Pulaski Road (Suffolk CR 11).
- Smithtown Bypass North (San Remo-Saint James): Beginning at East Main Street, St. Johnland Road, and Rose Street, and ending somewhere in the vicinity of Edgewood Avenue (eastern intersection). Upon completion of this segment, NY 111 would have been extended to Saint James.
- Setauket-Port Jefferson Station Bypass: Beginning between North Country Road & Ridgeway Drive, and ending at New York State Route 112 at Hallock Avenue. Upon completion of this segment, NY 112 was to be extended along Main Street into the Port Jefferson-Bridgeport Ferry.
- Nugent Drive Extension: Beginning at the intersection of NY 25A & Sound Avenue, it would have veered right before Hulse Landing Road (Suffolk CR 54) then turned south crossing New York State Route 25 east of the current terminus finally reaching Edwards Avenue in Calverton north of the former railroad station. From there it would have replaced Edwards Avenue and connected with the existing section southeast of Exit 71 at the Long Island Expressway. Like the existing section of Nugent Drive, it was to be designated Suffolk CR 94, and would have been multiplexed with NY 25A from Wading River to Suffolk CR 94A (Center Drive Spur) terminating at Main Street(NY 25) in Riverhead, as well as NY 24.
[edit] References
- Suffolk County Department of Public Works.
- Old Hagstroms Long Island and Suffolk County Maps.
- Smithtown Public Library Local History Department.
