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U.S. Route 9W (US 9W) is a north–south
U.S. Highway The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...
in the states of
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
and
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
. It begins in
Fort Lee, New Jersey Fort Lee is a borough at the eastern border of Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, situated along the Hudson River atop the Palisades. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the borough's population was 40,191. As of the 2010 U.S. census, th ...
, as Fletcher Avenue crosses the US 1–9, US 46, and the Interstate 95 (I-95) approaches to the
George Washington Bridge The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee, New Jersey, with Manhattan in New York City. The bridge is named after George Washington, the first president of the United St ...
, and heads north up the west side of the
Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
to US 9 in
Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York City ...
. As its "W" suffix indicates, US 9W is a westerly alternate route of US 9 between the two locations. US 9W directly serves three cities— Newburgh, Kingston, and Albany—and enters the vicinity of several others. As the route heads north, it connects to several highways of regional importance, including
I-84 Interstate 84 may refer to: * Interstate 84 (Oregon–Utah), passing through Idaho, formerly known as Interstate 80N * Interstate 84 (Pennsylvania–Massachusetts) Interstate 84 (I-84) is an Interstate Highway in the Northeaster ...
,
US 209 U.S. Route 209 (US 209) is a long U.S. Highway in the states of Pennsylvania and New York. Although the route is a spur of US 9, US 209 never intersects US 9, coming within five miles of the route and making the short ...
,
New York State Route 23 New York State Route 23 (NY 23) is an east–west state highway in the eastern portion of New York in the United States. It extends for from an intersection with NY 26 in the Central New York town of Cincinnatus in Cortland County ...
(NY 23), and US 20. Much of US 9W parallels the
New York State Thruway {{Infobox road , state = NY , type = NYST , alternate_name = Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway , maint = NYSTA , map = {{maplink, frame=yes, plain=yes, frame-align=center, frame-width=290, type=line, stroke-width=2, type2=line, from2=New Yor ...
and NY 32; additionally, the latter
overlap Overlap may refer to: * In set theory, an overlap of elements shared between sets is called an intersection, as in a Venn diagram. * In music theory, overlap is a synonym for reinterpretation of a chord at the boundary of two musical phrases * Ove ...
s with US 9W in four different locations.


Route description

For much of its length, US 9W is a two-lane surface road. However, some stretches in New Jersey and New York widen to four lanes, and much of the highway in Orange County is like an expressway even if not so designated.


New Jersey

US 9W begins as a four lane road. Heading north on Fletcher Avenue (from Kelby Street intersection, near the
George Washington Bridge The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee, New Jersey, with Manhattan in New York City. The bridge is named after George Washington, the first president of the United St ...
) in Fort Lee, US 9W occupies the right-of-way of the
Palisades Interstate Parkway The Palisades Interstate Parkway (PIP) is a limited-access highway in the U.S. states of New Jersey and New York (state), New York. The parkway is a major commuter route into New York City from Rockland County, New York, Rockland and Orange County ...
(PIP) to Lemoine Avenue, the northern terminus of Route 67. US 9W exits the right-of-way, turning north onto Lemoine Avenue, later Sylvan Avenue, in
Englewood Cliffs Englewood Cliffs is a borough in Bergen County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, whose population at the 2010 United States census was 5,281.Ferrari of North America,
Unilever Unilever plc is a British multinational consumer goods company with headquarters in London, England. Unilever products include food, condiments, bottled water, baby food, soft drink, ice cream, instant coffee, cleaning agents, energy drink, t ...
, and
CNBC CNBC (formerly Consumer News and Business Channel) is an American basic cable business news channel. It provides business news programming on weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Eastern Time, while broadcasting talk sho ...
. As the roadway enters Tenafly from Englewood Cliffs, it reduces to a two lane roadway from four lanes. It continues to parallel the PIP to its west as they progress northward along the west bank of the
Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
until reaching the border with New York State. Both roads run very near the top of the Palisades, occasionally offering views of New York City and the river. Lemoine Avenue is heavy with commercial development in the Coytesville section of Fort Lee, but as the road runs into Englewood Cliffs it transitions to corporate office buildings, and into the affluent community of
Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...
in the state's northeastern corner, it becomes more residential. Near Norwood, just south of the state line, US 9W crosses under the parkway and enters New York. Before the construction of the PIP, US 9W used to follow a route through the State Line Lookout at the New Jersey–New York border which is now accessible only from the parkway. The entire route of US 9W in New Jersey is within
Bergen County Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Palisades as Highland Avenue, a two-lane road through mostly residential suburban surroundings. It passes
Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
's
Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory The Lamont–Doherty Earth Observatory (LDEO) is the scientific research center of the Columbia Climate School, and a unit of The Earth Institute at Columbia University. It focuses on climate and earth sciences and is located on a 189-acre (64 h ...
and then
Tallman Mountain State Park Tallman Mountain State Park is a state park in Rockland County, New York, located adjacent to the Hudson River in the Town of Orangetown just south of Piermont. It is part of the Palisades Interstate Park System. History Tallman Mountain St ...
. Bending westward to Sparkill, it meets
NY 340 New York State Route 340 (NY 340) is a state highway in southeastern Rockland County, New York, in the United States. Though it is signed as an east–west route, it actually follows a north–south alignment. The southern termin ...
. It returns to the riverside at Piermont, where it takes the name Broadway Avenue. Running due north, it enters Nyack and meets with the
New York State Thruway {{Infobox road , state = NY , type = NYST , alternate_name = Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway , maint = NYSTA , map = {{maplink, frame=yes, plain=yes, frame-align=center, frame-width=290, type=line, stroke-width=2, type2=line, from2=New Yor ...
(
I-87 Interstate 87 may refer to either of two unconnected Interstate Highways in the United States: * Interstate 87 (New York), a highway running from New York City north to the Canadian border in Champlain, New York. * Interstate 87 (North Carolina) ...
and
I-287 Interstate 287 (I-287) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the US states of New Jersey and New York. It is a partial beltway around New York City, serving the northern half of New Jersey and the counties of Rockland and Westchester in N ...
) just west of the Tappan Zee Bridge. It then runs along the Thruway to the east terminus of NY 59 in downtown Nyack, where it becomes North Highland Avenue once again. North of
Upper Nyack Upper Nyack is a village incorporated in 1872 in the town of Clarkstown, Rockland County, New York, United States. It is located north of the village of Nyack, east of Valley Cottage, south of Rockland Lake State Park, and west of the Hudson R ...
, it passes Rockland Lake thru
Valley Cottage Valley Cottage is a hamlet and census-designated place in the town of Clarkstown, New York, United States. It is located northeast of West Nyack, northwest of Central Nyack east of Bardonia, south of Congers, northwest of Nyack, and west of ...
and then
Rockland Lake State Park Rockland Lake State Park is a state park located in the hamlets of Congers and Valley Cottage in the eastern part of the Town of Clarkstown in Rockland County, New York, United States. The park is located on a ridge of Hook Mountain above th ...
. Alongside the park, it crosses town lines again.
NY 303 New York State Route 303 (NY 303) is a north–south state highway in eastern Rockland County, New York, in the United States. It begins at the New Jersey state line in the hamlet of Tappan and runs generally northward for to an interse ...
reaches its north end just after the park, and after a tight curve NY 304, reaches its northern terminus as well. US 9W then returns to the riverside briefly, trending away from it into
Haverstraw Haverstraw is a town in Rockland County, New York, United States, located north of the Town of Clarkstown and the Town of Ramapo; east of Orange County; south of the Town of Stony Point; and west of the Hudson River. The town runs from the we ...
under the name Congers Avenue. The village is followed immediately by
West Haverstraw West Haverstraw is a Administrative divisions of New York#Village, village incorporated in 1883 in the town of Haverstraw, New York, Haverstraw, Rockland County, New York, Rockland County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is located no ...
, where US 202 comes in at an oblique angle and joins US 9W, creating the first concurrency along the route. The combined highways head north from the Haverstraws as South, then North, Liberty Drive, passing Stony Point Battlefield. They return to the Hudson at Tomkins Cove, where the Hudson River National Defense Reserve (Mothball) Fleet was moored from 1947 to 1971. Between Tomkins Cove and Jones Point there are two large ships anchor surrounding a monument alongside the road that marks the spot which is just across from the
Indian Point Energy Center Indian Point Energy Center (I.P.E.C.) is a three-unit nuclear power plant station located in Buchanan, just south of Peekskill, in Westchester County, New York. It sits on the east bank of the Hudson River, about north of Midtown Manhattan. Th ...
in Buchanan. At Jones Point the road curves and bends above the river as it works its way around
Dunderberg Mountain Dunderberg Mountain is a mountain on the west bank of the Hudson River at the southern end of the Hudson Highlands. It lies just above Jones Point, New York, within Bear Mountain State Park and the town of Stony Point in Rockland County, New Yo ...
, the southernmost peak of the
Hudson Highlands The Hudson Highlands are mountains on both sides of the Hudson River in New York state lying primarily in Putnam County on its east bank and Orange County on its west. They continue somewhat to the south in Westchester County and Rockland County ...
and part of
Bear Mountain State Park Bear Mountain State Park is a state park located on the west bank of the Hudson River in Rockland and Orange counties, New York. The park offers biking, hiking, boating, picnicking, swimming, cross-country skiing, cross-country running, sledd ...
. At Iona Island, it levels out again briefly and then US 9W/202 climbs to the heart of the state park at Bear Mountain Inn and Hessian Lake, where the
Appalachian Trail The Appalachian Trail (also called the A.T.), is a hiking trail in the Eastern United States, extending almost between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine, and passing through 14 states.Gailey, Chris (2006)"Appalachian Tr ...
crosses beneath the road in the only man-made tunnel along its entire route. The
Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...
line is crossed just before Bear Mountain Circle.


Orange County

The circle marks the northern terminus of the Palisades Parkway and the junction with US 6. US 202 leaves US 9W to join US 6 here and cross the
Bear Mountain Bridge The Bear Mountain Bridge, ceremonially named the Purple Heart Veterans Memorial Bridge, is a toll suspension bridge in New York State. It carries US 6 and US 202 across the Hudson River between Bear Mountain State Park in Orange Co ...
. North of the circle, US 9W continues as an undivided four-lane road, crossing
Popolopen Creek Popolopen is the name of several related landmarks mainly within the Hudson Highlands of Orange County, New York. These include a mountain, Popolopen Torne—or simply "The Torne", and a short and steep-sided nearby valley officially called H ...
and affording views of the similarly named Torne. It passes first the historic Fort Montgomery, then enters the small hamlet of the same name, distinguished by a post office, gas station, and some other small businesses. A half-mile (1 km) further north, NY 218 ( Storm King Highway), the former route of US 9W, forks off to the right, carrying traffic to Highland Falls and the
United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...
at
West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...
. At this point US 9W becomes a divided
limited-access highway A limited-access road, known by various terms worldwide, including limited-access highway, dual-carriageway, expressway, limited access freeway, and partial controlled access highway, is a highway or arterial road for high-speed traffic which ...
as it starts to climb the highlands above the village and the academy. The first exit is NY 218, which joins US 9W for a mile just north of the village. It leaves the highway at the northern terminus of NY 293 to run alongside Storm King Mountain. From here, US 9W continues its ascent, offering sweeping views over the river and Highlands, with an overlook available to northbound drivers. The surrounding land is all woods, part of the vast USMA property. After passing Crow's Nest, Storm King and the rocky cliff faces of Butter Hill dominate the northward view. Another parking lot allows travelers to stop and sightsee, as well as hike the Stillman Trail up the two peaks. After Storm King, the road begins a long descent into the Town of Cornwall. Just outside the village of
Cornwall-on-Hudson Cornwall-on-Hudson is a riverfront village in the town of Cornwall, Orange County, New York, United States. It lies on the west bank of the Hudson River, approximately north of New York City. The population as of the 2010 census was 3,018. It ...
and the fields of
New York Military Academy New York Military Academy (NYMA) is a college preparatory, co-ed boarding school in the rural town of Cornwall, north of New York City, and one of the oldest military schools in the United States. Originally a boys' school, it started admitting ...
, NY 218 ends its loop. Shortly afterwards, the division ends and grade intersections resume, although the road remains four lanes as it enters the Town of New Windsor. It descends again where
Breakneck Ridge Breakneck Ridge is a mountain along the Hudson River between Beacon, New York, Beacon and Cold Spring, New York, Cold Spring, New York (state), New York, straddling the boundary between Dutchess County, New York, Dutchess and Putnam County, New ...
and Bull Hill tower across the river. Traffic begins to slow down at the center of town, where NY 94 ends its journey across the county. After this traffic light, the road begins to narrow. Once across Quassaick Creek and into Newburgh, it is Robinson Avenue, a wide urban arterial with parking along the sides. It ascends gently past
Delano-Hitch Stadium Delano-Hitch Stadium is a stadium in Newburgh (city), New York, Newburgh, New York (state), New York; it has a current capacity of 3,100. Early years Baseball in Newburgh goes back to the 1860s: the Hudson River club played from 1863 to 1867, com ...
and the associated park to the center of its passage across Newburgh, the intersection with Broadway. Here NY 17K has its eastern terminus, and NY 32, the other main surface route west of the Hudson, begins its first concurrency with US 9W. Passing Broadway School, a former elementary school which is in the process of being converted into the City of Newburgh Court House, the two routes head into a more residential sector of the city, marked by the
Frederick Law Olmsted Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822August 28, 1903) was an American landscape architect, journalist, social critic, and public administrator. He is considered to be the father of landscape architecture in the USA. Olmsted was famous for co- ...
-designed Downing Park. The road's climb continues until the North campus of Newburgh Free Academy, where it starts to descend to the busy exit at
I-84 Interstate 84 may refer to: * Interstate 84 (Oregon–Utah), passing through Idaho, formerly known as Interstate 80N * Interstate 84 (Pennsylvania–Massachusetts) Interstate 84 (I-84) is an Interstate Highway in the Northeaster ...
, visible ahead, just west of the
Newburgh–Beacon Bridge The Hamilton Fish Newburgh–Beacon Bridge is a cantilever toll bridge that spans the Hudson River in New York State. The bridge carries Interstate 84 (I-84) and New York State Route 52 (NY 52) between Newburgh and Beacon. Cons ...
. This junction, also including
NY 52 New York State Route 52 (NY 52) is a state highway in the southeastern part of the state. It generally runs from west to east through five counties, beginning at the Pennsylvania state line in the Delaware River near Narrowsburg, cros ...
, is the city's northern limit. Immediately after it, NY 32 leaves to the northwest while US 9W continues northwards. It passes Powelton Country Club, part of the affluent community of Balmville, the first of several within the Town of Newburgh that 9W will pass. Middle Hope follows, as the road becomes a two-lane route with a rural feel. Development continues along the road, but there are increasingly large unbroken fields or
woodlot A woodlot is a parcel of a woodland or forest capable of small-scale production of forest products (such as wood fuel, sap for maple syrup, sawlogs, and pulpwood) as well as recreational uses like bird watching, bushwalking, and wildflower apprecia ...
s and finally, in the northern reaches of the town,
orchard An orchard is an intentional plantation of trees or shrubs that is maintained for food production. Orchards comprise fruit- or nut-producing trees which are generally grown for commercial production. Orchards are also sometimes a feature of larg ...
s. At Roseton, past the access road to the nearby power plants, the highway reaches the county line just past the turnoff to the Gomez Mill House, the earliest surviving Jewish home in the U.S.


Ulster County

Traffic is slowed when it passes through the hamlet of
Marlboro Marlboro (, ) is an American brand of cigarettes, currently owned and manufactured by Philip Morris USA (a branch of Altria) within the United States and by Philip Morris International (now separate from Altria) outside the US. The largest Marl ...
, but otherwise there is little change in US 9W until it widens to four lanes again just south of the
Mid-Hudson Bridge The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Mid-Hudson Bridge is a toll suspension bridge which carries US 44 and NY 55 across the Hudson River between Poughkeepsie and Highland in the state of New York. History Proposals for the Mid-Hudson span were made by ...
approach overpass. At this point, US 44 and
NY 55 New York State Route 55 (NY 55) is a east-west state highway in southern New York, running from the Pennsylvania state line at the Delaware River in Barryville to the Connecticut state line at Wingdale. It is the only other state hig ...
join the highway from the east. The road becomes a busy commercial strip for the next mile to the concurrency's end, where NY 44 and NY 55 go down into
Highland Highlands or uplands are areas of high elevation such as a mountainous region, elevated mountainous plateau or high hills. Generally speaking, upland (or uplands) refers to ranges of hills, typically from up to while highland (or highlands) is ...
. The four lanes continue, however, for several more miles until well past the eastern terminus of
NY 299 New York State Route 299 (NY 299) is a short but important state route entirely within Ulster County, New York, in the United States. Centered on its interchange with the New York State Thruway outside New Paltz, it provides access from ...
, the road that carries traffic west toward the Thruway and
New Paltz New Paltz () is an incorporated U.S. town in Ulster County, New York. The population was 14,003 at the 2010 U.S. Census. The town is located in the southeastern part of the county and is south of Kingston. New Paltz contains a village, also with ...
. About north of that intersection, the road returns to two lanes through West Park and Esopus, passing primarily through largely undeveloped, primarily wooded countryside. It becomes more built up at Port Ewen, just south of Kingston, which it enters by crossing
Rondout Creek Rondout Creek is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed October 3, 2011 tributary of the Hudson River in Ulster and Sullivan counties, New York, United States. It rises on Rock ...
via the John T. Loughran Bridge and becoming Frank Koenig Boulevard and four lanes with limited access. It runs right through Kingston this way and meets NY 32 again at the city's northern boundary. Turning left, US 9W's second concurrency with NY 32 is only long as it almost immediately turns right onto East Chester Street. The road widens again, becoming a busy commercial strip. At the freeway interchange ahead for the Kingston–Rhinecliff Bridge,
US 209 U.S. Route 209 (US 209) is a long U.S. Highway in the states of Pennsylvania and New York. Although the route is a spur of US 9, US 209 never intersects US 9, coming within five miles of the route and making the short ...
comes to its northern end and NY 199 its western. In Lake Katrine, the road begins to narrow and traffic lightens. US 9W stays on a straight northward course, following alongside
Esopus Creek Esopus Creek is a tributary of the Hudson River that drains the east-central Catskill Mountains in the U.S. state of New York. From its source at Winnisook Lake on the slopes of Slide Mountain, the Catskills' highest peak, it flows across Uls ...
but not crossing it, until it veers northeast to merge, once again, with NY 32. This third concurrency finally brings the road over the Esopus and into the riverside village of Saugerties. Here US 9W follows Partition Street and then Main Street when the routes part again, with NY 32 carrying NY 212 out of this junction. As Malden Avenue, the highway continues north alongside the river once again, passing through the hamlet of Malden-on-Hudson on its way up into Greene County.


Greene County and north

In Catskill, US 9W meets with NY 23A, then NY 385 at its southern terminus, then a mile north,
NY 23 New York State Route 23 (NY 23) is an east–west state highway in the eastern portion of New York in the United States. It extends for from an intersection with NY 26 in the Central New York town of Cincinnatus in Cortland County ...
. In Coxsackie, US 9W meets this time with the northern terminus of NY 385, as well as the eastern terminus of
NY 81 New York State Route 81 (NY 81) is an east–west state highway in the Capital District of New York in the United States. The western terminus of the route is at an intersection with NY 145 and Potter Hollow Road (unsigned NY  ...
. In West Coxsackie, US 9W meets with the
New York State Thruway {{Infobox road , state = NY , type = NYST , alternate_name = Governor Thomas E. Dewey Thruway , maint = NYSTA , map = {{maplink, frame=yes, plain=yes, frame-align=center, frame-width=290, type=line, stroke-width=2, type2=line, from2=New Yor ...
(
I-87 Interstate 87 may refer to either of two unconnected Interstate Highways in the United States: * Interstate 87 (New York), a highway running from New York City north to the Canadian border in Champlain, New York. * Interstate 87 (North Carolina) ...
). Further north, the route meets NY 144, and in the village of
Ravena Ravena is a village in Albany County, New York, United States. The population was 3,271 in the 2020 census an increase of 3 over the 2010 census. The village is in the southeast part of the town of Coeymans. History The village of Ravena ...
, it meets NY 143.
NY 396 New York State Route 396 (NY 396) is a east–west state highway in Albany County, New York, in the United States. The route is functionally a spur route as it connects to another signed state highway at only one end. The western terminu ...
meets US 9W in Selkirk. After briefly joining with NY 32 again, US 9W meets
I-787 Interstate 787 (I-787) is an auxiliary Interstate Highway in the US state of New York. I-787 is the main highway for those traveling into and out of downtown Albany. The southern terminus is, per New York traffic data, at the toll plaza ...
south of Albany. Immediately thereafter, NY 443 joins US 9W until Madison Avenue ( US 20), where NY 443 ends. US 9W, however, continues on, meeting with
NY 5 New York State Route 5 (NY 5) is a state highway that extends for across the state of New York in the United States. It begins at the Pennsylvania state line in the Chautauqua County town of Ripley and passes through Buffalo, Syrac ...
(junction not signed on NY 5) before ending at US 9 ( Clinton Avenue).


History


Origins

In New York, much of what is now US 9W was designated as Route 3, an unsigned
legislative route In the United States, a legislative route (LR) or legislative highway is a highway defined by laws passed in a state legislature. The numbering of such highways may or may not correspond to the numbers familiar to the public as part of the state, ...
, by the
New York State Legislature The New York State Legislature consists of the two houses that act as the state legislature of the U.S. state of New York: The New York State Senate and the New York State Assembly. The Constitution of New York does not designate an official ...
in 1908. The route extended from the
New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...
state line at
Orangetown Orangetown is a town in Rockland County, New York, United States, located in the southeastern part of the county. It is northwest of New York City, north of New Jersey, east of the town of Ramapo, south of the town of Clarkstown, and west of t ...
and went northward through the
Hudson Valley The Hudson Valley (also known as the Hudson River Valley) comprises the valley of the Hudson River and its adjacent communities in the U.S. state of New York. The region stretches from the Capital District including Albany and Troy south to ...
to the city of Albany. Route 3 broke from modern US 9W in several locations, mostly in areas where the route has since been moved onto bypasses. In Clarkstown, Route 3 veered west to serve Congers via Lake and Old Haverstraw Roads. From Highland Falls to
Cornwall-on-Hudson Cornwall-on-Hudson is a riverfront village in the town of Cornwall, Orange County, New York, United States. It lies on the west bank of the Hudson River, approximately north of New York City. The population as of the 2010 census was 3,018. It ...
, Route 3 followed modern NY 218 around Storm King Mountain. Lastly, Route 3 utilized current NY 385 between Catskill and Coxsackie. This route north of Route 3 was altered slightly on March 1, 1921, to bypass Congers on modern US 9W. When the first set of posted routes in New York were assigned in 1924, all of legislative Route 3 south of
Ravena Ravena is a village in Albany County, New York, United States. The population was 3,271 in the 2020 census an increase of 3 over the 2010 census. The village is in the southeast part of the town of Coeymans. History The village of Ravena ...
was designated as part of
NY 10 New York State Route 10 (NY 10) is a north–south state highway in the Central New York and North Country regions of New York in the United States. It extends for from the Quickway ( NY 17) (Future Interstate 86) in Deposit ...
. From Ravena to Albany, however, NY 10 followed a more easterly alignment along what is now NY 143, NY 144, and NY 32. This route had been previously been signed as part of the West Shore Route auto trail north of Newburgh. The New Jersey segment of modern US 9W was originally designated as part of Route 18N in 1923, a route that ran from
Hoboken Hoboken ( ; Unami: ') is a city in Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 60,417. The Census Bureau's Population Estimates Program calculated that the city's population was 58,69 ...
to the
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...
state line at
Alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National Pa ...
via Fort Lee. In the 1927 New Jersey state highway renumbering, Route 18N was truncated northward to Fort Lee. At the time, present-day County Route 501 (CR 501) north of Fort Lee was part of Route 1.State of New Jersey, Laws of 1927, Chapter 319. In 1929, Route 18N was supplanted by a realigned Route 1.ROUTE NO. 1. Alpine to Bayonne. Beginning at the New York state line on state highway route heretofore designated as Route No. 18--north in Alpine and terminating in Bayonne, by way of Alpine, Tenafly, Fort Lee and Ridgefield, in Bergen county, North Bergen, Jersey City and Bayonne, in Hudson county. L. 1929, c. 126, p. 215, s. 1. The Route 1 designation remained in place until the
1953 New Jersey state highway renumbering On January 1, 1953, the New Jersey Highway Department renumbered many of the State Routes. This renumbering was first proposed in 1951 in order to reduce confusion to motorists. A few rules were followed in deciding what to renumber: *No state ro ...
when it was removed to eliminate
overlap Overlap may refer to: * In set theory, an overlap of elements shared between sets is called an intersection, as in a Venn diagram. * In music theory, overlap is a synonym for reinterpretation of a chord at the boundary of two musical phrases * Ove ...
s with several routes, including US 9W.


Designation

In the original 1925 plan for the
U.S. Highway System The United States Numbered Highway System (often called U.S. Routes or U.S. Highways) is an integrated network of roads and highways numbered within a nationwide grid in the contiguous United States. As the designation and numbering of these h ...
, US 9 was designated along the west bank of the
Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...
from Fort Lee to Albany, utilizing Route 18N in New Jersey and NY 10 in New York. The alignment of US 9 in northern New Jersey and New York remained unchanged in the final system alignment approved on November 11, 1926. However, when US 9 was commissioned in 1927, it was split into two branches between
Bergen County, New Jersey Bergen County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Waterford, New York Waterford is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 8,423 at the 2010 census. The name of the town is derived from its principal village, also called Waterford. The town is located in the southeast corner of Sara ...
. The west branch began in Ridgefield and continued to the New York state line on modern Route 93 and CR 501, bypassing Fort Lee to the west. At the state line, the west branch of US 9 became US 9W and followed a short piece of what is now
NY 340 New York State Route 340 (NY 340) is a state highway in southeastern Rockland County, New York, in the United States. Though it is signed as an east–west route, it actually follows a north–south alignment. The southern termin ...
to Sparkill. Past Sparkill, US 9W used what was originally planned as US 9 north to Waterford, utilizing modern NY 32 from Albany to Waterford. This edition shows U.S. Routes as they were first officially signed in 1927. The east branch of US 9 initially followed Route 5 east from Ridgefield to Edgewater, where it followed the Edgewater Ferry to the New York state line in the Hudson River. The branch resumed at the northern
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
line as US 9E and continued to Waterford on what is now US 9 and US 4 along the eastern side of the river. At Waterford, the two branches converged and continued north toward the Canada–US border as a unified US 9.


Early changes

The two branches of US 9 in New Jersey were altered several times over the next decade. At some point between 1927 and 1929, the west branch of US 9 was reconfigured in Bergen County to enter Fort Lee from the south on Palisade Avenue (current Route 67) and proceed north from Fort Lee to New York on Route 18N (later Route 1). The portion of US 9W in New York south of Sparkill was altered accordingly to meet the realigned US 9. In the early 1930s, the east branch of US 9 was shifted southward to reach New York via modern Route 139 and the
Holland Tunnel The Holland Tunnel is a vehicular tunnel under the Hudson River that connects the New York City neighborhood of Hudson Square in Lower Manhattan to the east with Jersey City in New Jersey to the west. The tunnel is operated by the Port Author ...
while the west branch of the route was realigned to follow what is now US 1–9 between
Tonnele Circle The Tonnele Circle is an intersection in Jersey City, New Jersey, United States. It is named after Tonnele TUN-uh-lee"Avenue, the north–south road that runs through it. Entrances and exits Entrances to and exits from Tonnele Circle are lis ...
and Fort Lee. US 9W was extended southward into New Jersey , replacing the west branch of US 9. US 9 was rerouted to follow US 9W and the
George Washington Bridge The George Washington Bridge is a double-decked suspension bridge spanning the Hudson River, connecting Fort Lee, New Jersey, with Manhattan in New York City. The bridge is named after George Washington, the first president of the United St ...
to New York; as a result, US 9W was cut back to its current southern terminus in Fort Lee. In the 1930 renumbering of state highways in New York, US 9W was truncated southward to end in Albany while US 9E was redesignated as just US 9 and reconfigured to bypass Waterford to the west in favor of a direct alignment between Albany and Round Lake.''Automobile Legal Association (ALA) Automobile Green Book'', 1930–31 and 1931–32 editions, (Scarborough Motor Guide Co., Boston, 1930 and 1931). The 1930–31 edition shows New York state routes prior to the 1930 renumbering At the same time, US 9W was realigned through New Baltimore and Coeymans to use modern NY 144 instead. The portion of what is now US 9W from New Baltimore to Albany was originally designated as NY 144 as part of the 1930 renumbering while the segment from Catskill to Coxsackie was assigned NY 385 . The alignments of US 9W and NY 385 were swapped by the following year while the routings of US 9W and NY 144 were flipped in April 1935


Bypasses

In the early 1930s, plans were made by the state of New York to construct a new highway between the
Bear Mountain Bridge The Bear Mountain Bridge, ceremonially named the Purple Heart Veterans Memorial Bridge, is a toll suspension bridge in New York State. It carries US 6 and US 202 across the Hudson River between Bear Mountain State Park in Orange Co ...
and Cornwall-on-Hudson that would bypass both Cornwall-on-Hudson and Highland Falls and bypass the narrow Storm King Highway, US 9W's original routing between the two. On April 8, 1934, three people were killed by a rockslide on the Storm King Highway, expediting plans for the new highway, known as the Storm King Cut-off. The southernmost of the highway—from the bridge to just north of Fort Montgomery—utilized the existing right-of-way of US 9W, which was widened from two to four lanes and straightened through the construction of rock
cut Cut may refer to: Common uses * The act of cutting, the separation of an object into two through acutely-directed force ** A type of wound ** Cut (archaeology), a hole dug in the past ** Cut (clothing), the style or shape of a garment ** Cut (ea ...
s. Construction on this segment was completed in 1937. The portion of the bypass from Fort Montgomery to Cornwall-on-Hudson, with the exception of a stretch northwest of Highland Falls, was constructed on a new alignment. It was built with four lanes and constructed along the sides of Storm King Mountain and other, smaller hills in the area. The high elevation of the roadway gave rise to a bevy of scenic, panoramic views that stretched for several miles into the distance; as a result, a fifth lane was added in some areas to allow motorists to stop and view the scenery. Like the section south of Fort Montgomery, the one-mile stretch that utilized the original US 9W was widened to four lanes as well. Several interchanges were built along the route, including with NY 293 and NY 307. The cut-off was opened to traffic from Fort Montgomery to NY 293 sometime in 1939 or 1940 and to Angola Road ( CR 9) on September 26, 1940. The last section, from Angola Road north to Blooming Grove Turnpike north of Cornwall-on-Hudson, was opened to traffic on May 31, 1941. US 9W was realigned to follow the cut-off while its old route via the Storm King Highway became NY 218. Bypasses have also been proposed or constructed in other locations. In Kingston, US 9W was originally routed on Wurts Street, McEntee Street, Broadway, and East Chester Street. An easterly bypass of the city between Wurts Street and NY 32 was constructed in the late 1970s and completed as a realignment of US 9W by 1981. The portion of US 9W's former alignment south of Abeel Street in Kingston became NY 984D, an unsigned reference route. In Albany, the north end of US 9W and part of US 9 would have been rerouted onto a proposed limited-access highway called the Mid–Crosstown Arterial. The project was eventually cancelled.


Major intersections


See also

*
List of reference routes in New York A reference route is an unsigned highway assigned by the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) to roads that possess a signed name (mainly parkways), that NYSDOT has determined are too minor to have a signed touring route number, o ...


References


External links


An enlarged view of road jurisdiction at the Fort Lee approaches to the George Washington Bridge
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PDF Portable Document Format (PDF), standardized as ISO 32000, is a file format developed by Adobe in 1992 to present documents, including text formatting and images, in a manner independent of application software, hardware, and operating systems. ...
)
New Jersey Roads: US 9WUS 9W @ NYS Thruway Exit 10 (Empire State Roads.com)US 9W @ NYS Thruway Exit 11 (Empire State Roads.com)Capital Highways -- Mid-Crosstown ArterialPolice Scanner Frequencies for Route 9WSpeed Limits for Route 9W in New Jersey
{{DEFAULTSORT:U.S. Route 009w Transportation in Bergen County, New Jersey Transportation in Rockland County, New York Transportation in Orange County, New York 09W 09W 09W Hudson River Limited-access roads in New York (state) Transportation in Ulster County, New York Transportation in Greene County, New York Transportation in Albany County, New York