I was on the Taconic from White Plains to I-84 today and noticed some old abandoned ramps from the NB side around mile marker 30, just south of NY 301. What were they for and where did they go? It was cool seeing the old concrete there.
Also, some of these NY Pkwys are very dangerous. Some of the side street conenctions are a disaster waiting to happen. Side streets about 14 feet wide with no turn lanes for traffic on the Taconic (can you say rear-ending waiting to happen). Plus, the Bronx/Taconic traffic circle and the Taconic in Valhalla is very poorly designed. I wonder if it was considered poorly designed even in the 1930s?
Judging from the satellite view on google maps, looks like an old parking are or even an old alignment of the road.
Many of NY's parkways are under-designed, especially upstate where they were intended to connect parks. I can't speak for the Taconic, but the Lake Ontario State Parkway is just a couple inches of ashphalt on dirt and has similar at-grades.
You used to be able to make left turns onto an off of a lot of those side streets, as well. Though I believe all the median breaks have been done away with by now, except for the few signalized intersections between Valhalla and Hawthorne. Hey, It's a step.
Quote from: Duke87 on April 30, 2011, 11:29:48 PM
You used to be able to make left turns onto an off of a lot of those side streets, as well. Though I believe all the median breaks have been done away with by now, except for the few signalized intersections between Valhalla and Hawthorne. Hey, It's a step.
Yes, but some of those side streets, they are barely streets and the square corners!
A few median breaks are still open in northern Dutchess County and Columbia County.
I grew up near the Bryant Pond Road interchange, and remember many nights waiting for my dad to make his way home from work in Poughkeepsie, knowing that he had to make the left off the TSP to Bryant Pond Road, with only a break in the median guard rail. That spot was always a nightmare.
To my knowledge, the abandoned ramp near NY 301 is actually an old piece of the TSP. Not sure of the actual history though.
The traffic circle between the TSP and the BRP was reconstructed in the 1990's, if my memory is correct. So, it used to be worse.
I used to drive up from CT to this area to visit my friend at Bard College near Red Hook, NY.. I can't tell you how many near-accidents (and a few actual accidents) I was involved with on the Taconic.
People going the wrong way, people turning without looking, places where you couldn't see oncoming traffic no matter how careful you were, etc.
I'm absolutely amazed it hasn't been more re-done than it is - maybe it's a big NIMBY area?
I'm going with the "old alignment" theory. Here's a Google Map (http://maps.google.com/maps?ie=UTF8&ll=41.454676,-73.819134&spn=0.012689,0.01929&t=h&z=16) of the area, but Bing has Bird's Eye (http://www.bing.com/maps/?v=2&cp=qx89018vfmzz&lvl=17&dir=0&sty=b&FORM=LMLTCC) in the area. It almost looks like there was something over the roadway in the abandoned section if you zoom in further on Bing.
http://historical.mytopo.com/getImage.asp?fname=west41ne.jpg&state=NY