New York State Thruway

[Buffaboy]

I found this picture of the Thruway on the History Channel website. I knew exactly where this was when I saw it.



I couldn't figure out the age though. The lack of trees completely threw me off, but this has to be 1954...

[Rothman]

I found this picture of the Thruway on the History Channel website. I knew exactly where this was when I saw it.



I couldn't figure out the age though. The lack of trees completely threw me off, but this has to be 1954...

Why 1954 exactly?

[Buffaboy]

That's a guess, but because the section between Utica and Syracuse opened first, and the earthwork and roadway looks new, I figured it would be either that year or 2-3 years newer.

[vdeane]

According to the Thruway's site, the first section to open as we know the Thruway today (excluding the small sections that were built before toll collection), was Rochester to Lowell, which is west of exit 32.
https://www.thruway.ny.gov/oursystem/toll-collector-history.html

[RobbieL2415]

Honestly, and as I've said a few times before, just mark the mileage for I-90/I-87 alongside the original Thruway posts.

It's the motorist's own fault if they can't understand what it means.

[DJ Particle]

I found this picture of the Thruway on the History Channel website. I knew exactly where this was when I saw it.



I couldn't figure out the age though. The lack of trees completely threw me off, but this has to be 1954...

Here?
https://www.google.com/maps/place/Utica,+NY/@43.1299805,-75.2623679,7404m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m5!3m4!1s0x89d93751356a7629:0x111a362618edfc86!8m2!3d43.100903!4d-75.232664

[TonyTrafficLight]

Not sure if that is the Mohawk Street Bridge over the canal in Marcy center of the photo.

Rt 49 would be the road top left. It was a main road from Utica to Rome and would have been more developed, plus
the curve in the Thruway top of the photo doesnt match the road alignment.

[webny99]

Other interesting note: at 45, the sign on I-490 near exit 29 for the Thruway with two indicating which lane to be in for each direction of I-90.  The old toll booth warning sign on the bridge has been replaced with "freeway ends" for some reason; not exactly normal to see such a sign approaching a freeway/freeway interchange. 

I noticed that as well. Maybe because you do have to slow down significantly for the ramps to the Thruway? It is a free-flowing connection, but not a high-speed one, especially the trumpet.

No changes at exit 47 yet.

I haven't been down to that end of I-490 in an embarrassingly long time. Are the booths gone there yet?

[webny99]

I had a chance to drive part of I-87 south of Albany this past weekend (between New Paltz and Catskill) and I'm officially on the bandwagon with those of you claiming that it needs to be widened. It was OK heading north, but terrible heading southbound with all the traffic heading back towards the NYC area. It reminded me of how Buffalo-Syracuse sometimes gets in the summer, with long, slow-moving packs of traffic, but even worse.

[vdeane]

I haven't been down to that end of I-490 in an embarrassingly long time. Are the booths gone there yet?

Like I said, no change.  Booths still there and everything.

[webny99]

I haven't been down to that end of I-490 in an embarrassingly long time. Are the booths gone there yet?

Like I said, no change.  Booths still there and everything.

Ah, OK. I wasn't sure what your baseline was.

[vdeane]

I haven't been down to that end of I-490 in an embarrassingly long time. Are the booths gone there yet?

Like I said, no change.  Booths still there and everything.

Ah, OK. I wasn't sure what your baseline was.

You can track the progress on the Thruway site, though it seems they only update that page once a month or so.  Exit 47 isn't slated to begin construction until July.

[baugh17]

I haven't been down to that end of I-490 in an embarrassingly long time. Are the booths gone there yet?

Like I said, no change.  Booths still there and everything.

Ah, OK. I wasn't sure what your baseline was.

You can track the progress on the Thruway site, though it seems they only update that page once a month or so.  Exit 47 isn't slated to begin construction until July.

Observations from my drive out to Buffalo on Saturday...

33...I did not notice if they had started work here.  There were still there last weekend.
34...Confirmed still there
35-36...Gone
37...???
38-39...Gone
40-43...Still there
44-45...??? (From previous reports, I believe both are gone)
46...Still there
47...Still there apparently
48-48A-49-Williamsville Barrier...Gone (Appears 48 was just removed)

[vdeane]

37 is gone per the Thruway site.  45 was one of the top priority for removal, so it's been gone since last year.  44 was still there as of May 30, and construction is slated to start in "June 2021" per the Thruway site, so it may or may not still be there (probably still is, since it's only been a week, and the larger/busier ones can take a bit longer to remove).

EDIT:
Also worth mentioning, here's what the signage looks like on I-490 east approaching the Thruway:


I-90 also has a couple error "state speed limit" signs.  One of them is a permanent install, the other is actually patched for the work zone limit.

[74/171FAN]

I-90 also has a couple error "state speed limit" signs.  One of them is a permanent install, the other is actually patched for the work zone limit.

I guess it is not a surprise considering I have seen regular "SPEED LIMIT 55" in some locations though I cannot think of a specific one offhand.

[vdeane]

There are quite a few scattered around Region 5.  Here's one along NY 394.

[SignBridge]

Shouldn't those I-90 east/west signs in the above photo also show the Thruway logo with the I-90 shields?

[vdeane]

The Thruway logo isn't used as prominently as one would see with, say, the PA Turnpike, NJ Turnpike, or MassPike.  It's used on practically no reassurance shields and whether it's used on guide signs varies by region.  Even many Thruway signs don't use it.

They may have also only had so much room - those signs replaced a previous one.

[SignBridge]

Thanks vdeane. Interesting that the old sign at least said Thruway on it.

[shadyjay]

The Thruway logo isn't used as prominently as one would see with, say, the PA Turnpike, NJ Turnpike, or MassPike.  It's used on practically no reassurance shields and whether it's used on guide signs varies by region. 

Downstate you'll see Thruway trailblazers on the approach to the Thruway in the Bronx and in the Suffern area (Exits 15-15A, on both reassurance and overheads).  Other than on approach roads to the Thruway from the surface, no others, though some overheads replaced in recent years on the mainline at Exits 17 and 23 have space for such.

[crispy93]

37 is gone per the Thruway site.  45 was one of the top priority for removal, so it's been gone since last year.  44 was still there as of May 30, and construction is slated to start in "June 2021" per the Thruway site, so it may or may not still be there (probably still is, since it's only been a week, and the larger/busier ones can take a bit longer to remove).

EDIT:
Also worth mentioning, here's what the signage looks like on I-490 east approaching the Thruway:


I-90 also has a couple error "state speed limit" signs.  One of them is a permanent install, the other is actually patched for the work zone limit.

There are some STATE SPEED LIMIT 55 signs on NY 27 in Massapequa that were patched over when the limit was reduced to 45. The STATE is whited out, and the "4" that patches over the "5" is a different font; they look hideous. Not sure why they couldn't get a hold of some regular 45 mph signs. There's also a STATE SPEED LIMIT 35 sign with the STATE covered up on this service road in Queens, which is interesting because there are no 55 mph zones in NYC: https://goo.gl/maps/Cgbd21dctEkD1kjh8

But I digress

[Harvestman]

Stupid question, but I'm not from the area so...
What's the status of the Thruway information radio frequencies? I've looked up a couple of them and the FCC licenses appear to have been cancelled back in January.  I didn't see any signs mentioning them on my trip to Syracuse earlier this year.  Are they officially a thing of the past or still being phased out?

[vdeane]

The signs were all taken down late last year/early this year and the page on the website was removed too.  I didn't know the FCC licenses were cancelled too.  I guess it really is gone then.

In the past couple years or so it seemed like the quality of the radio had been going down; more static, less consistent with the broadcast format, nothing on the radio even when there's a bad incident, an incident mentioned on the radio that had cleared a while back, etc.  So on the one hand, good riddance, but on the other, I'm sad to see it go.  I had all the stations they used on my AM presets and used to check them when the sign was flashing or I was caught in stop and go traffic.

[shadyjay]

Signs in the lower Hudson Valley are still up, but tarped.

Funny how they want you to use the app now, but that's on your phone and that would be against NYS policy on hands free driving.  So there's no legal way to get traffic info if you're a solo driver on the Thruway.

[Rothman]

When I-190 went toll free and when the booths were ripped out...so were the ground plates for the transmitters for the traffic radio.  Whoops.