Transportation in Westchester
by Alina Durkovic
Since the early days of the interstate highway system in the 1950s, businesses located alongside busy highways, parkways and expressways have prospered. The reason for this is traffic brings customers, residents and tourists to these businesses. Highways and expressways in the United States are responsible for combining the luxury of “urban convenience and rural freedom”.[1] The development of highway and expressway shaped the way suburbs function giving commuters the ability to work in a congested city for eight hours and be able to return to fresh air, landscaped lawns, and quiet. Highways, expressways and parkways opened the door for a connection with industry and business. Highways were also responsible for opening the doors to live in the suburbs. For example, the New York State Thruway opened an interchange at Syracuse where an industrial park was being developed. Businesses therefore spent millions of dollars investing in this idea of getting employees to work and travel efficiently. “Through popular exhibitions such as the World’s Fair in 1939, GM created in the minds of Americans a technological image of the suburban landscape, built with the fruits of scientific research and wholly dependent on the automobile. Then, GM and other interested corporations promoted the construction of a national system of highways throughout the 1940s, and began building in the suburbs as soon as World War II ended”.[2]
Early parkways such as the Bronx River Parkway had little traffic and were in fact planned as a recreational drive in parks and around water supply systems in Westchester. “Residential streets are deliberately curved to make impractical any speed above 25 miles per hour.”[3] Prior to 1934 only Westchester and Long Island had major suburban highway projects in the United States. Robert Moses started work on a parkway system in 1934, some of his projects in New York City include the Belt Parkway, Grand Central Parkway, Cross Island Parkway and Cross Bronx Expressway. The popularity of these parkway and highway projects caused the demand for highways after World War II. Highways and parkways provided a comfortable way to travel from work and home as opposed to public transportation. Residents using highways brought an increase of land value to lands bordering parkways.
Cross Westchester Expressway
Planners in New York City and Westchester County were implementing ideas for what is now the Cross Westchester Expressway since the 1920s. The name “Cross Westchester Expressway” became part of I-287 and runs east-west in Westchester only. The idea was a basically a limited-access highway originally to be named the Central Westchester Parkway in the late 1920s. This is significant because parkways are defined as an open landscaped highway while an expressway is specifically designed for fast traffic with a controlled entrance and exit. Plans were developed by the Westchester County Parks commission to design parkways that connected the Saw Mill, Bronx River and Hutchinson parkways which are north-south systems. There was a great demand by passenger and commercial vehicles to have this highway by the end of World War II. The Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT) for I-287 between the western town boundary and the junction with I-684 was approximately 119,200.[4]
In 1956 after several years of public hearings and community debate, the building of the New York Route 119 inspired the work on the Cross Westchester Expressway which are both east-west systems. The NY119 or Cross Westchester Expressway starts in Tarrytown in Westchester and ends in White Plains, Westchester. The Cross Westchester became incorporated into the Interstate system, it was entitled to federal funding by 90 percent. In 1960, the Cross Westchester extending from the New York State Thruway (I-87) to the New England Thruway (I-95) was completed at an estimated $50 million. After being named the I-187 in 1958, it was changed to the I-487 then finally in 1961 to the I-287. [5]
In the 1970s and 1980s, Westchester built up corporate campuses along the I-287 corridor that brought jobs and money to the area. The suburban corporate campus which is a cluster of modern buildings, green lawns and parking lots became a new ‘corporate culture’ in the 1970s. Corporate campuses were shaped by the building of highways, some incentives of these campuses were lower real estate prices, tax incentives and the ability to drive to and from work.
Final completion of the Cross Westchester Expressway was achieved in 1994 with new exits in Rockland County, Montville and Suffern, New Jersey. Maintenance duties was originally given to the New York State Department of Transportation. In 1991, maintenance responsibilities were redistributed to the New York State Thruway Authority with major projects still within the NYSDOT jurisdiction.
Bronx River Parkway
In the early 1900s, Americans began to heavily rely on motorized transportation. This started the building of scenic roads and parkways, they were not part of an organized project but of a development plan. Between 1913 and 1930 four highways were built in Westchester County. One of the first and most important designs dedicated to passenger vehicles was the Bronx River Parkway that parallels the Bronx River from Soundview in the Bronx to the Kensico Dam in Westchester County. The Bronx River Parkways was the “fore-runner of a growing system of expressways that will soon form a vast network extending through the continental United States.”[6] One of the original requirements upon the building of this parkway was the preservation of natural features and landscaping such as trees and plants. The ability to be able to use this parkway for recreation purposes thus sparked public interest.
New York State Thruway
During the 1940s, the chief planner of Westchester County, Hugh Pomeroy, authorized three north-south thruways that would connect to existing parkways in the county in the same year that the construction of the New York State Thruway was authorized. In 1950, construction in Westchester of the NYS Thruway began. Between Rockland and Westchester counties, 30 miles of highway was constructed in 1956. This project connected the Major Deegan in New York City and paralleled the Saw Mill River Parkway. “In Elmsford, the New York State Thruway was planned to turn west at the junction of the Cross Westchester Expressway (EXIT 8, I-287) before the "Cross-Hudson" (Tappan Zee) Bridge.”[7]
The Platinum Mile
The Platinum Mile is a stretch of corporate campuses running parallel along four miles of the Cross Westchester Expressway in White Plains, Harrison and Rye. From the 1960s through the 1980s, corporations such as IBM and General Foods built suburban headquarters with lawns and fountains. The Platinum Mile is a section of Westchester off of the I-287 from White Plains to Purchase known for its business region including organizations such as General Foods and IBM. “About 75 percent of all commercial office space in Westchester is within five miles of I-287 and more than 6,700 businesses are in the I-287 corridor, occupying 30 million square feet of office spaces.”[8] The businesses in this area employ approximately one-third of the local population or 140,000 people. Because of this, it is crucial to have accessible and free flowing highways helping the economic development of Westchester. From the success of businesses and the highways that get employees to work, a non-profit organization funded by the NYSDOT known as the MetroPool has been established in efforts to promote carpooling, van pooling and bicycling.
Notes:
[1]Snow, Brewster. The Highway and the Landscape
[2] Wood, D. "Selling The Suburbs: Nature, Landscape, Adverts, Community." Transformations 5 (2002): 1-10. Reference Search. Web. 31 Oct. 2012.
[3] Snow, 77.
[4] Comprehensive Plan Harrison 2006: Chapter 2: Town-wide Analysis
[5] "Let's Be Realistic About Thruways" by Hugh R. Pomeroy, Westchester County Planning Department (2/21/1950)
[6] Snow, 34.
[7] http://www.nycroads.com/roads/thruway/
[8] Loria, Keith. "Life On 287 -- A Road Well Traveled." Westchester County Business Journal 45.44 (2006): S5. Regional Business News. Web. 7 Oct. 2012.
Since the early days of the interstate highway system in the 1950s, businesses located alongside busy highways, parkways and expressways have prospered. The reason for this is traffic brings customers, residents and tourists to these businesses. Highways and expressways in the United States are responsible for combining the luxury of “urban convenience and rural freedom”.[1] The development of highway and expressway shaped the way suburbs function giving commuters the ability to work in a congested city for eight hours and be able to return to fresh air, landscaped lawns, and quiet. Highways, expressways and parkways opened the door for a connection with industry and business. Highways were also responsible for opening the doors to live in the suburbs. For example, the New York State Thruway opened an interchange at Syracuse where an industrial park was being developed. Businesses therefore spent millions of dollars investing in this idea of getting employees to work and travel efficiently. “Through popular exhibitions such as the World’s Fair in 1939, GM created in the minds of Americans a technological image of the suburban landscape, built with the fruits of scientific research and wholly dependent on the automobile. Then, GM and other interested corporations promoted the construction of a national system of highways throughout the 1940s, and began building in the suburbs as soon as World War II ended”.[2]
Early parkways such as the Bronx River Parkway had little traffic and were in fact planned as a recreational drive in parks and around water supply systems in Westchester. “Residential streets are deliberately curved to make impractical any speed above 25 miles per hour.”[3] Prior to 1934 only Westchester and Long Island had major suburban highway projects in the United States. Robert Moses started work on a parkway system in 1934, some of his projects in New York City include the Belt Parkway, Grand Central Parkway, Cross Island Parkway and Cross Bronx Expressway. The popularity of these parkway and highway projects caused the demand for highways after World War II. Highways and parkways provided a comfortable way to travel from work and home as opposed to public transportation. Residents using highways brought an increase of land value to lands bordering parkways.
Cross Westchester Expressway
Planners in New York City and Westchester County were implementing ideas for what is now the Cross Westchester Expressway since the 1920s. The name “Cross Westchester Expressway” became part of I-287 and runs east-west in Westchester only. The idea was a basically a limited-access highway originally to be named the Central Westchester Parkway in the late 1920s. This is significant because parkways are defined as an open landscaped highway while an expressway is specifically designed for fast traffic with a controlled entrance and exit. Plans were developed by the Westchester County Parks commission to design parkways that connected the Saw Mill, Bronx River and Hutchinson parkways which are north-south systems. There was a great demand by passenger and commercial vehicles to have this highway by the end of World War II. The Average Annual Daily Traffic (AADT) for I-287 between the western town boundary and the junction with I-684 was approximately 119,200.[4]
In 1956 after several years of public hearings and community debate, the building of the New York Route 119 inspired the work on the Cross Westchester Expressway which are both east-west systems. The NY119 or Cross Westchester Expressway starts in Tarrytown in Westchester and ends in White Plains, Westchester. The Cross Westchester became incorporated into the Interstate system, it was entitled to federal funding by 90 percent. In 1960, the Cross Westchester extending from the New York State Thruway (I-87) to the New England Thruway (I-95) was completed at an estimated $50 million. After being named the I-187 in 1958, it was changed to the I-487 then finally in 1961 to the I-287. [5]
In the 1970s and 1980s, Westchester built up corporate campuses along the I-287 corridor that brought jobs and money to the area. The suburban corporate campus which is a cluster of modern buildings, green lawns and parking lots became a new ‘corporate culture’ in the 1970s. Corporate campuses were shaped by the building of highways, some incentives of these campuses were lower real estate prices, tax incentives and the ability to drive to and from work.
Final completion of the Cross Westchester Expressway was achieved in 1994 with new exits in Rockland County, Montville and Suffern, New Jersey. Maintenance duties was originally given to the New York State Department of Transportation. In 1991, maintenance responsibilities were redistributed to the New York State Thruway Authority with major projects still within the NYSDOT jurisdiction.
Bronx River Parkway
In the early 1900s, Americans began to heavily rely on motorized transportation. This started the building of scenic roads and parkways, they were not part of an organized project but of a development plan. Between 1913 and 1930 four highways were built in Westchester County. One of the first and most important designs dedicated to passenger vehicles was the Bronx River Parkway that parallels the Bronx River from Soundview in the Bronx to the Kensico Dam in Westchester County. The Bronx River Parkways was the “fore-runner of a growing system of expressways that will soon form a vast network extending through the continental United States.”[6] One of the original requirements upon the building of this parkway was the preservation of natural features and landscaping such as trees and plants. The ability to be able to use this parkway for recreation purposes thus sparked public interest.
New York State Thruway
During the 1940s, the chief planner of Westchester County, Hugh Pomeroy, authorized three north-south thruways that would connect to existing parkways in the county in the same year that the construction of the New York State Thruway was authorized. In 1950, construction in Westchester of the NYS Thruway began. Between Rockland and Westchester counties, 30 miles of highway was constructed in 1956. This project connected the Major Deegan in New York City and paralleled the Saw Mill River Parkway. “In Elmsford, the New York State Thruway was planned to turn west at the junction of the Cross Westchester Expressway (EXIT 8, I-287) before the "Cross-Hudson" (Tappan Zee) Bridge.”[7]
The Platinum Mile
The Platinum Mile is a stretch of corporate campuses running parallel along four miles of the Cross Westchester Expressway in White Plains, Harrison and Rye. From the 1960s through the 1980s, corporations such as IBM and General Foods built suburban headquarters with lawns and fountains. The Platinum Mile is a section of Westchester off of the I-287 from White Plains to Purchase known for its business region including organizations such as General Foods and IBM. “About 75 percent of all commercial office space in Westchester is within five miles of I-287 and more than 6,700 businesses are in the I-287 corridor, occupying 30 million square feet of office spaces.”[8] The businesses in this area employ approximately one-third of the local population or 140,000 people. Because of this, it is crucial to have accessible and free flowing highways helping the economic development of Westchester. From the success of businesses and the highways that get employees to work, a non-profit organization funded by the NYSDOT known as the MetroPool has been established in efforts to promote carpooling, van pooling and bicycling.
Notes:
[1]Snow, Brewster. The Highway and the Landscape
[2] Wood, D. "Selling The Suburbs: Nature, Landscape, Adverts, Community." Transformations 5 (2002): 1-10. Reference Search. Web. 31 Oct. 2012.
[3] Snow, 77.
[4] Comprehensive Plan Harrison 2006: Chapter 2: Town-wide Analysis
[5] "Let's Be Realistic About Thruways" by Hugh R. Pomeroy, Westchester County Planning Department (2/21/1950)
[6] Snow, 34.
[7] http://www.nycroads.com/roads/thruway/
[8] Loria, Keith. "Life On 287 -- A Road Well Traveled." Westchester County Business Journal 45.44 (2006): S5. Regional Business News. Web. 7 Oct. 2012.