Route description
The New York State Thruway system is a collection of six individual components across the state of New York that connect the state to four neighboring states (Mainline
{{See also, Interstate 87 (New York), Interstate 90 in New YorkSouth of Albany
The mainline of the Thruway begins, both in terms ofAlbany to Syracuse
South of Schenectady, but still in Albany County, the Thruway and I-90 meet I-890, a loop route of I-90 that directly serves the downtown district of Schenectady, at exit 25. The Thruway, meanwhile, bypasses the city to the south and west, intersecting I-88 at exit 25A inSyracuse to Buffalo
West of Salina, the Thruway passes north ofWest of Buffalo
Just west of the toll barrier, I-90 and the Thruway—now toll-free—connect to I-290 via exit 50, a semi-directional T interchange. At this point, the Thruway turns southward, passing through the immediate eastern suburbs of Buffalo. As it heads south, it meets theBerkshire Connector
{{See also, Interstate 90 in New York The Berkshire Connector is a {{convert, 24.28, mi, 2, adj=on east–west spur connecting the Thruway mainline in Coeymans to theGarden State Parkway Connector
{{See also, Garden State Parkway The Garden State Parkway Connector is a {{convert, 2.40, mi, 2, adj=on highway that connects the Thruway mainline at exit 14A in Ramapo with the Garden State Parkway at theOther components
{{See also, Interstate 95 in New York, Interstate 190 (New York), Interstate 287 The New York State Thruway system also consists of three other components: theHistory
Origins and construction
A toll superhighway connecting the major cities of the state of New York that would become part of a larger nationwide highway network was proposed as early as 1949. The following year, theTappan Zee Bridge replacement
{{Main, Tappan Zee Bridge (2017–present) The original Tappan Zee Bridge, carrying the concurrency of the New York State Thruway, I-87, and I-287, was aInterstate 84
Except for the Newburgh-Beacon Bridge that is owned and maintained by the New York State Bridge Authority (NYSBA), Interstate 84 was a toll-free component of the New York State Thruway System from 1991 to 2010. Prior to 1991, I-84 was constructed and maintained by the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT). In 2010, maintenance responsibilities of I-84 reverted to NYSDOT as part of a deal to permanently de-tollOther developments
In 1964, the New York State Legislature officially renamed the Thruway in honor ofServices
There are 27 service areas along the Thruway, all on the New York–Ripley mainline. The service areas, called "travel plazas" by the New York State Thruway Authority (NYSTA), are spaced roughly {{convert, 30, mi, 0 apart and are open at all hours of the day. Two plazas—the New Baltimore plaza at milepost 127 and theTravel plazas
{, class="wikitable sortable" , - ! Name !! Location !! Direction !! Milepost !! Restaurants !! Services !! Fuel , - , style="text-align:center;", Ardsley , style="text-align:center;", Greenburgh , style="text-align:center;", Northbound , style="text-align:center;", {{convert, 6.0, mi, km , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Closed for construction , style="text-align:center;", Sunoco , - , style="text-align:center;", Sloatsburg , style="text-align:center;" rowspan="2", Sloatsburg , style="text-align:center;", Northbound , rowspan="2" style="text-align:center;", {{convert, 33.0, mi, km , style="text-align:center;",Tolls
All components of the New York State Thruway system except for the Garden State Parkway Connector and the Cross-Westchester Expressway are tolled in some capacity. The entire Thruway has used an all-electronic, open road tolling system since November 14, 2020, with tolls being collected by E-ZPass or Tolls by Mail.{{cite web, last1=Taddeo, first1=Sarah, last2=Campbell, first2=Jon, date=November 12, 2020, title=Thruway cashless tolling begins Saturday: Here's what you need to know to avoid late fees, url=https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2020/11/12/cashless-tolling-new-york-thruway-e-z-pass-what-you-need-know/6249219002/, access-date=August 2, 2021, website=New York State Team{{cite web, date=November 14, 2020, title=NYS Thruway now cashless, url=https://13wham.com/news/local/nys-thruway-now-cashless, access-date=August 2, 2021, website=WHAM Seventy electronic toll gantries comprise the Thruway toll system.{{cite web, last=Hunter, first=Matt, date=August 20, 2020, title=Construction of Thruway's Cashless Tolling System Nearly Complete, url=https://spectrumlocalnews.com/nys/capital-region/news/2020/08/20/construction-of-thruway-s-cashless-tolling-system-nearly-complete, access-date=August 2, 2021, website=spectrumlocalnews.com {{As of, 2021, drivers with out-of-state issued E-ZPass transponders pay 15% more than drivers with transponders issued by the New York Customer Service Center. Tolls by Mail rates are 30% higher than New York E-ZPass rates.{{cite web, last1=Taddeo, first1=Sarah, last2=Campbell, first2=Jon, date=November 18, 2020, title=NY Thruway cashless tolls: You had questions. We have answers., url=https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/politics/albany/2020/11/18/thruway-cashless-tolls-answering-your-questions-ny-new-system/6281747002/, access-date=August 2, 2021, website=New York State Team Tolls by Mail drivers pay an additional fee when receiving their invoice.{{cite web, date=November 7, 2014, title=What is Cashless Tolling, url=https://www.thruway.ny.gov/cashless/billing.html, access-date=August 2, 2021, publisher=New York State Thruway AuthorityComponent toll sections
There are three types of toll sections on the Thruway: closed-toll segments, flat-rate highway gantry segments, and flat-rate bridge/barrier gantry segments. On the closed-toll segments, a driver is electronically recorded when they enter and pay a distance-based toll upon exit. The highway gantry segments are situated between closed-toll segments and are spaced so they require a toll to travel between any pair of exits on each segment. Finally, the barrier/bridge gantries generally contain free exits on either side of the gantry.Closed-toll segments and highway gantries
Prior to the implementation of electronic tolling, the longer of the two closed-toll systems began at Woodbury and extended from NY 17 to just east of exit 50 in Williamsville. The Berkshire Connector was enclosed within this system, so traveling between the mainline and the connector via exit 21A did not involve crossing an electronic toll gantry. Under the old ticket system, the connector's exits up to the toll barrier at exit B3 were listed with the mainline exits on tickets for the major closed system. The other system encompassed the portion of the mainline between exit 55 in Lackawanna and exit 61 near the Pennsylvania state line.{{cite web, author=New York State Thruway Authority, year=2010, title=New York State Thruway Toll Schedule, url=http://www.nysthruway.gov/tolls/tollschedules/scheduleacash.pdf, url-status=dead, archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100527145001/http://www.nysthruway.gov/tolls/tollschedules/scheduleacash.pdf, archive-date=May 27, 2010, access-date=April 22, 2010, publisher=New York State Thruway Authority Similar to the old system, any travel between exits 15A and 50 and between exits 55 and 61 requires paying a toll, but a mixture of closed-toll segments and fixed-toll gantries are used. There are six closed-toll segments on the Thruway, which are numbered 1 through 6. Within each closed-toll segment, there are highway gantries on the mainline Thruway before the respective start and end of each segment, as well as on the entrance and exit ramps of all interchanges between each of these highway gantries. Cameras or E-ZPass readers record vehicles entering each segment, and a distance-based toll is calculated when vehicles leave that segment. Segments 1 through 5 cover the exits in the old closed-toll system from Woodbury to Williamsville, while segment 6 comprises the shorter system from Lackawanna toStandalone fixed toll gantries
This class of toll gantry on the Thruway system replaced former fixed-rate toll barrier plazas located at bridges and other locations. These particular toll points are their own class because they are not considered segments of the distance-based toll system (former ticket systems), unlike fixed-rate segment highway gantries which are situated between distance-based toll segments. These toll points were made cashless (changed from plazas to gantries) first, from 2016 to 2018, contrasted with fixed-rate segment highway gantries, which were established for tolling in November 2020, when cashless tolling went live on the ticket systems of the Thruway. Even before cashless tolling, which brought more segmentation and the other class of fixed-rate toll point, these toll points were considered standalone due to being outside the ticket systems. This class of toll gantry, and the toll barriers that existed before, are subject to conditions such as direction of travel and not being covered by the E-ZPass annual permit plan. On the mainline Thruway, there are three flat-rate bridge/barrier gantries. The southernmost of these is in Yonkers, where there is a bi-directional gantry between exits 6A and 7. InCost
When the Thruway opened in the mid-1950s, the cost to travel from Buffalo to New York City was $5.60 (equivalent to ${{formatprice, {{inflation, US-GDP, 5.60, 1954, r=0 in {{inflation-year, US-GDP). The closed ticket system, which at the time extended from Spring Valley to Williamsville, accounted for $5 of the toll, while the remaining $0.60 was charged at the Yonkers ($0.10) and Tappan Zee ($0.50) toll barriers.{{cite news , title = Collecting The Tolls , date = June 20, 1954 , newspaper = The New York Times , page = XX10 {{inflation-fn, US-GDP After the south end of the major closed ticket system was moved from Spring Valley to Woodbury, the Spring Valley toll barrier became a fixed-rate toll for both cars and trucks. The Spring Vallery barrier's car toll was removed in July 1997. At the time, the toll was $0.40 (equivalent to ${{formatprice, {{inflation, US-GDP, 0.40, 1997, r=0 in {{inflation-year, US-GDP).{{inflation-fn, US-GDP As of August 2021, the trip from Buffalo to the New York City line costs $31.04 with toll-by-plate ($23.87 for New York E-ZPass holders) with two-axle passenger vehicles, calculated at 15 gantries and tolling sections. The return trip costs $24.21 ($18.62 with New York E-ZPass) across 14 gantries and tolling sections, as the Tappan Zee Bridge gantry only charges a southbound/eastbound toll. As of August 2021, the Berkshire Connector costs $1.03 ($0.79 with New York E-ZPass) to travel between theExit list
For exits on the Cross-Westchester Expressway, theMainline
{{NYinttop, exit, length_ref={{cite web , author = New York State Thruway Authority , url = http://www.thruway.ny.gov/travelers/interchanges/index.html , title = Interchange/Exit Listing with Mileposts , publisher = New York State Thruway Authority , access-date = July 25, 2015 , location_ref={{cite web , url = https://www.dot.ny.gov/divisions/engineering/technical-services/highway-data-services/inventory-listing , title = Inventory Listing , author = ((Office of Technical Services, Engineering Division)) , date = 2014 , publisher = New York State Department of Transportation , access-date = July 25, 2015Berkshire Connector
The Berkshire Connector is a closed-ticket system that extends east from the Thruway mainline to the Canaan Toll Barrier, connecting the mainline Thruway to theGarden State Parkway Connector
{{NYinttop, length_ref=, county=Rockland, location_ref=, exit_ref=, unnum=yes, dest_ref= {{NYint , location=Chestnut Ridge , mile=0.00 , mspan=2 , road={{jct, state=NY, I-Toll, 87, I-Toll, 287, NYST, nolink3=no, location1=See also
*{{Portal-inline, U.S. Roads *{{Portal-inline, New York (state) * Schoharie Creek Bridge collapse – bridge collapse along the Thruway in 1987 {{-References
{{Reflist, 2External links
{{Commons category, New York State Thruway {{Attached KML, display=title,inline