The Ocean Parkway is a
parkway that traverses
Jones Beach Island
Jones Beach Island is one of the outer barrier islands off the southern coast of Long Island in the U.S. state of New York.
Etymology
It is named for Major Thomas Jones, who first came to Long Island in 1692, where he proceeded to build the ...
between
Jones Beach State Park and
Captree State Park
Captree State Park is a state park located in the towns of Babylon and Islip in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The park is located south of Captree Island on the easternmost end of Jones Beach Island, and overlooks the Fire Island ...
on
Long Island
Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...
,
New York, in the United States. It begins at the southern terminus of the
Meadowbrook State Parkway
The Meadowbrook State Parkway (also known as the Meadowbrook, the Meadowbrook Parkway or the MSP) is a parkway in Nassau County, New York, in the United States. Its southern terminus is at a full cloverleaf interchange with the Bay and Ocean ...
and heads east across Jones Beach Island, intersecting the south end of the
Wantagh State Parkway
The Wantagh State Parkway is a long state parkway on Long Island, New York, in the United States. It links the Ocean Parkway in Jones Beach State Park with the Northern State Parkway in Westbury. The parkway is located approximately east of ...
before ending just past the southern terminus of the
Robert Moses Causeway
The Robert Moses Causeway is an parkway in Suffolk County, New York on Long Island. The parkway, originally known as the Captree Causeway, connects West Islip on Long Island to the barrier beach islands, such as Captree Island, Jones Beach I ...
. The highway is designated New York State Route 909D (NY 909D), an unsigned
reference route.
Route description
![Ocean Parkway WB approaching the Wantagh](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Ocean_Parkway_WB_approaching_the_Wantagh.jpg)
The Ocean Parkway begins at a
cloverleaf interchange with the southern terminus of the
Meadowbrook State Parkway
The Meadowbrook State Parkway (also known as the Meadowbrook, the Meadowbrook Parkway or the MSP) is a parkway in Nassau County, New York, in the United States. Its southern terminus is at a full cloverleaf interchange with the Bay and Ocean ...
and the
Bay Parkway in
Jones Beach State Park. Proceeding eastward, the Ocean Parkway parallels the Bay Parkway through Jones Beach State Park, running along the beachfront and past multiple recreational facilities. Just after a connection to the Bay Parkway, the four-lane parkway passes a parking lot for Jones Beach, along with a turnoff into a secondary lot for the bathhouse and the
Jones Beach Theatre. In front of that turnoff, the westbound lanes pass two ramps that lead to a large parking lot that spans the gap between the Ocean and Bay parkways. After the parking lot, the Ocean Parkway enters a
roundabout
A roundabout is a type of circular intersection or junction in which road traffic is permitted to flow in one direction around a central island, and priority is typically given to traffic already in the junction.''The New Shorter Oxford En ...
around the
Jones Beach Water Tower (locally known as "The Pencil"), marking the southern terminus of the
Wantagh State Parkway
The Wantagh State Parkway is a long state parkway on Long Island, New York, in the United States. It links the Ocean Parkway in Jones Beach State Park with the Northern State Parkway in Westbury. The parkway is located approximately east of ...
.
After the Wantagh, the Ocean Parkway continues east along the beachfront, passing another large parking lot on the westbound lanes and access to the Jones Beach Pitch and Putt on the eastbound lanes. The four-lane parkway then begins to run between the beachfront and the shore for Zachs Bay, a section of the
Great South Bay
The Great South Bay is a lagoon situated between Long Island and Fire Island, in the State of New York. It is about long and has an average depth of 4 feet 3 inches and is 20 feet at its deepest. It is protected from the Atlantic Ocean by Fire ...
. Passing multiple u-turn ramps between directions, the parkway soon leaves Jones Beach State Park and enters a piece of the town of
Oyster Bay. Passing south of Guggenheim Pond, the Ocean continues east as the four-lane arterial it was in the park, soon entering
Tobay Beach
Tobay Beach is a restricted access recreational beach located in the middle of Jones Beach Island, a barrier island off the South Shore of Long Island, Nassau County, New York, United States, within the Massapequa 11758 Zip code. Its name is a ...
Park, where the median expands for a short distance. In the center of the park, the parkway reaches the parking lots on the westbound lanes and the Tobay Beach bathhouse on the eastbound lanes. A cross under is provided under the lanes of the Ocean for people to safely cross the parkway.
A short distance from the bathhouse, the Ocean Parkway leaves Tobay Beach Park and enters the
Suffolk County town of
Babylon
''Bābili(m)''
* sux, 𒆍𒀭𒊏𒆠
* arc, 𐡁𐡁𐡋 ''Bāḇel''
* syc, ܒܒܠ ''Bāḇel''
* grc-gre, Βαβυλών ''Babylṓn''
* he, בָּבֶל ''Bāvel''
* peo, 𐎲𐎠𐎲𐎡𐎽𐎢 ''Bābiru''
* elx, 𒀸𒁀𒉿𒇷 ''Babi ...
. Entering the hamlet of
West Gilgo Beach
West Gilgo Beach is a small private gated community located in the town of Babylon, in Suffolk County, New York, United States. It is part of the Gilgo census-designated place.
History
West Gilgo Beach was founded on Sept 18, 1939 by reside ...
, the parkway runs alongside many beachfront residences, with an intersection from the westbound lanes to the community. Soon entering Gilgo Beach, the Ocean passes several more bayside residences along the Great South Bay. The parkway expands to six lanes as it passes the access to Gilgo Beach and the cross under between the parking lot and the beach. Near the cross under, the parking lot is accessed via a tolled entrance from the westbound lanes. As the Ocean Parkway leaves Gilgo Beach, the six-lane parkway crosses into
Gilgo State Park.
![Ocean Parkway in Babylon](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Ocean_Parkway_in_Babylon.jpg)
Through Gilgo State Park, the Ocean Parkway develops a wide, grassy median between the six lanes. Passing another section of the Great South Bay, the parkway soon leaves the park, where the median returns, thins out and access is provided to another beach and recreational facilities, as the road passes the Cedar Beach Golf Course. Entering another section of Gilgo State Park, the Ocean Parkway evens out eastward before leaving the park for the hamlet of
Oak Beach
Oak Beach is a small community and census-designated place located near the eastern end of Jones Beach Island, a barrier island between the Atlantic Ocean and the Great South Bay of Long Island. The community is part of the village of Babylon in ...
. Crossing north of several oceanside residences, the parkway soon crosses between the
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...
and Oak Island as it reaches the center of the hamlet. Before paralleling Captree Island, the parkway expands with a wider median once again, entering
Captree State Park
Captree State Park is a state park located in the towns of Babylon and Islip in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The park is located south of Captree Island on the easternmost end of Jones Beach Island, and overlooks the Fire Island ...
. A short distance into the park, the Ocean Parkway enters a cloverleaf interchange with the
Robert Moses Causeway
The Robert Moses Causeway is an parkway in Suffolk County, New York on Long Island. The parkway, originally known as the Captree Causeway, connects West Islip on Long Island to the barrier beach islands, such as Captree Island, Jones Beach I ...
.
After the causeway, the Ocean Parkway reduces to four lanes as it crosses into the town of
Islip
Islip may refer to:
Places England
* Islip, Northamptonshire
*Islip, Oxfordshire
United States
*Islip, New York, a town in Suffolk County
** Islip (hamlet), New York, located in the above town
**Central Islip, New York, a hamlet and census-d ...
, reaching the tollbooths that mark the eastern terminus of the Ocean. On the other side of the tollbooths, the right-of-way enters another roundabout and connects to another beach and the local marina in Captree State Park.
Ocean Parkway Coastal Greenway
In March of 2021, the Ocean Parkway Shared Use Path was completed, making it possible to bicycle or walk from
Jones Beach West End beaches to the
Jones Beach Theater
Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater (commonly known as the Jones Beach Theater) is an outdoor amphitheatre at Jones Beach State Park in Wantagh, New York. It is one of two major outdoor arenas in the New York metropolitan area, along with P ...
and onward into Suffolk County, ending at
Captree State Park
Captree State Park is a state park located in the towns of Babylon and Islip in Suffolk County, New York, United States. The park is located south of Captree Island on the easternmost end of Jones Beach Island, and overlooks the Fire Island ...
. The Greenway connects into mainland Long Island via the Ellen Farrant Shared-Use Path alongside the
Wantagh State Parkway
The Wantagh State Parkway is a long state parkway on Long Island, New York, in the United States. It links the Ocean Parkway in Jones Beach State Park with the Northern State Parkway in Westbury. The parkway is located approximately east of ...
terminating in
Seaford's Cedar Creek Park.
History
Originally, there had been plans to extend the parkway to nearby
Fire Island
Fire Island is the large center island of the outer barrier islands parallel to the South Shore of Long Island, in the U.S. state of New York.
Occasionally, the name is used to refer collectively to not only the central island, but also Lo ...
, and two attempts were made to authorize construction. However, residents resisted the plan: the first time for economic reasons, the second for environmental reasons. Although in 1964,
Robert Moses Causeway
The Robert Moses Causeway is an parkway in Suffolk County, New York on Long Island. The parkway, originally known as the Captree Causeway, connects West Islip on Long Island to the barrier beach islands, such as Captree Island, Jones Beach I ...
was extended from its original terminus on Captree Island to Fire Island leading to the potential extension of Ocean Parkway, park legislation in the 1960s blocked further plans to extend the parkway.
The eastbound direction of the parkway was significantly damaged by
Hurricane Sandy
Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as ''Superstorm Sandy'') was an extremely destructive and strong Atlantic hurricane, as well as the largest Atlantic hurricane on record as measured by diameter, with tropical-storm-force winds spann ...
in October 2012. The westbound side of the road was reconfigured into a two-lane, two-way highway while the eastbound lanes were repaired.
Exit list
References
External links
{{NYSR external links, display=Ocean Parkway, alps=ocean, termini=ocean
Ocean Parkway Article from NYCROADS Web SiteJones Beach State ParkCaptree State ParkOcean Parkway (Greater New York Roads)
Parkways in New York (state)
Roads on Long Island
Robert Moses projects
Unfinished buildings and structures in the United States
Transportation in Nassau County, New York
Transportation in Suffolk County, New York