The Niagara Scenic Parkway (known as the Robert Moses State Parkway until 2016) is a long north–south highway in western

Niagara County, New York Niagara County is in the U.S. state of New York. As of the 2020 census, the population was 212,666. The county seat is Lockport. The county name is from the Iroquois word ''Onguiaahra''; meaning ''the strait'' or ''thunder of waters''. Niag ...

, in the United States. Its southern terminus is at the LaSalle Expressway on the east bank of the

Niagara River The Niagara River () is a river that flows north from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario. It forms part of the border between the province of Ontario in Canada (on the west) and the state of New York in the United States (on the east). There are diffe ...

Niagara Falls Niagara Falls () is a group of three waterfalls at the southern end of Niagara Gorge, spanning the Canada–United States border, border between the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Ontario in Canada and the U.S. state, state ...

. The northern terminus is at New York State Route 18 (NY 18) at

Four Mile Creek State Park Four Mile Creek State Park is a state park located in the Town of Porter in Niagara County, New York. The park is at the mouth of Four Mile Creek on the shore of Lake Ontario, approximately north of the Niagara Falls. Description The park offe ...

in Porter near

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York. The Canada–United States border sp ...

. Originally, the parkway was one continuous road; however, due to low usage, a portion of the parkway near

was removed, separating the parkway into two sections. The length of the parkway is designated as New York State Route 957A by the

New York State Department of Transportation The New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT) is the department of the Government of New York (state), New York state government responsible for the development and operation of highways, Rail transport, railroads, mass transit systems ...

(NYSDOT). A long spur connecting the Niagara Scenic Parkway to

Fort Niagara State Park Fort Niagara State Park is located in the Town of Porter in Niagara County, New York, United States. Historic Fort Niagara is located within the park. The park is northwest of Youngstown near the northern terminus of the Niagara Scenic Parkw ...

near Youngstown is designated as New York State Route 958A. Both reference route designations are unsigned. The parkway, a divided highway for most of its route, is one of the most unorthodox

parkways in New York State The majority of parkways in the US state of New York are part of a statewide parkway system owned by several public and private agencies but mostly maintained by the New York State Department of Transportation (NYSDOT). A handful of other roads ...

, similar to Ocean Parkway on

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United States and the 18 ...

. Some portions, mainly between downtown Niagara Falls and Lewiston, are not built to

freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...

standards, and the parkway as a whole has gradually been relegated due to low usage.

Route description

The Niagara Scenic Parkway begins as a westward continuation of a spur off the LaSalle Expressway in

Niagara Falls, New York Niagara Falls is a city in Niagara County, New York, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 48,671. It is adjacent to the Niagara River, across from the city of Niagara Falls, Ontario, and named after the fame ...

. It connects with Interstate 190 (I-190) and NY 384 just west of its official southern terminus and passes under the

North Grand Island Bridge The North Grand Island Bridge is a pair of twin two-lane truss arch bridges spanning the Niagara River between Grand Island and Niagara Falls in New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United ...

as it heads west along the

. west of I-190, the parkway turns north and returns to

grade level Educational stages are subdivisions of formal learning, typically covering early childhood education, primary education, secondary education and tertiary education. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization ( UNESCO) ...

at Buffalo Avenue, where it terminates and continues north as John B. Daly Boulevard (designated but not signed as NY 952B by NYSDOT). Niagara Scenic Parkway south of NY 182

The parkway begins again at Findlay Drive just before

Whirlpool State Park Whirlpool State Park is a state park located in Niagara County, New York, north of the city of Niagara Falls. The park overlooks the Niagara Whirlpool on the Niagara River and the lower Niagara Gorge. Description Whirlpool State Park is a day- ...

. North of the park, the highway curves northeastward, matching the curvature of the gorge in the area. After serving the

Devil's Hole State Park Devil's Hole State Park is a state park located in Niagara County, New York, north of the City of Niagara Falls. The day-use park overlooks the lower Niagara River Gorge. History Devil's Hole State Park occupies a location that was historically ...

and interchanging with NY 104, it passes over the

Robert Moses Niagara Power Plant The Robert Moses Niagara Hydroelectric Power Station is a hydroelectric power station in Lewiston, New York, near Niagara Falls. Owned and operated by the New York Power Authority (NYPA), the plant diverts water from the Niagara River above Nia ...

. Many features are within view at this point: to the west of the parkway at this point are the

Sir Adam Beck Hydroelectric Power Stations Sir Adam Beck Hydroelectric Generating Stations are two hydroelectric generating stations in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. Sir Adam Beck Generating Station I, Sir Adam Beck Generating Station II and the Sir Adam Beck Pump Generating Station are ...

; to the north are the

Lewiston–Queenston Bridge The Lewiston–Queenston Bridge, also known as the Queenston–Lewiston Bridge, is an arch bridge that crosses the Niagara River gorge just south of the Niagara Escarpment. The bridge was officially opened on November 1, 1962. It is an internatio ...

and the Niagara River's course for miles ahead. The parkway interchanges with I-190 via Upper Mountain Road before passing under the bridge and re-widening to four lanes. Just north of the bridge, the Niagara Scenic Parkway approaches the edge of the

Niagara Escarpment The Niagara Escarpment is a long escarpment, or cuesta, in Canada and the United States that runs predominantly east–west from New York through Ontario, Michigan, Wisconsin, and into Illinois. The escarpment is most famous as the cliff ove ...

. Here, it is possible to see for several miles in any direction. Looking north, the remainder of the Niagara River can be seen, as can its mouth at

. The parkway descends the escarpment and meets NY 18F and

NY 104 New York State Route 104 (NY 104) is a east–west state highway in Upstate New York in the United States. It spans six counties and enters the vicinity of four cities—Niagara Falls, Lockport, Rochester, and Oswego—as it follow ...

just east of the village of Lewiston. North of Lewiston, the Parkway follows a largely north–south routing as it passes through largely rural sections of the towns of Lewiston and Porter. During this stretch, it has an exit to Pletcher Road, which links the parkway to Joseph Davis State Park. At the village of Youngstown, the Niagara Scenic Parkway interchanges with NY 93. North of the village, the parkway's median widens as it interchanges with a short spur (designated but not signed as NY 958A) leading to

and

Fort Niagara Fort Niagara is a fortification originally built by New France to protect its interests in North America, specifically control of access between the Niagara River and Lake Ontario, the easternmost of the Great Lakes. The fort is on the river's e ...

within. Past this junction, the parkway turns east and begins to parallel Lake Ontario. It passes under NY 18F and interchanges with Four Mile Creek Drive, the entry road for

, before terminating at an at-grade intersection with

NY 18 New York State Route 18 (NY 18) is an east–west state highway in western New York in the United States. It runs parallel to the south shore of Lake Ontario for most of its length between Niagara County and Monroe County. NY 18, ...

. The

New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (NYS OPRHP) is a state agency within the New York State Executive DepartmentParks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Law § 3.03. "The office of parks, recreation an ...

has jurisdiction over the parkway and its spur to Fort Niagara; however, NYSDOT maintains both highways.

History

Proposals for a

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 ...

to connect downtown

with the proposed

Niagara Thruway Niagara may refer to: Geography Niagara Falls and nearby places In both the United States and Canada *Niagara Falls, the famous waterfalls in the Niagara River * Niagara River, part of the U.S.–Canada border *Niagara Escarpment, the cliff o ...

, a spur of the

New York State Thruway , direction_a = South , terminus_a = {{Jct, state=NY, I, 95 at the The Bronx, Bronx–Yonkers, New York City line , junction = {{plainlist, * {{jct, state=NY, I, 287, Parkway, Saw Mill, NY, 119 in Elmsford, New York, Elmsford * {{jct, state=NY, ...

, surfaced by the 1950s. The general routing of the highway would begin at the Rainbow Bridge in downtown and parallel NY 384 on its north side to the

, where it would turn south to meet the northern terminus of the Niagara Thruway. However, by the 1960s, a new alignment along the bank of the

and through the

Niagara Falls State Park Niagara Falls State Park is located in the City of Niagara Falls in Niagara County, New York, United States. The park, recognized as the oldest state park in the United States, contains the American Falls, the Bridal Veil Falls, and a portion ...

was selected instead. Two portions of the "Niagara Parkway", as it was then known, were completed by 1962. The first extended from the Niagara Thruway ( Interstate 190) to the Rainbow Bridge. Another, representing a northward extension of the parkway, was open along the

Niagara Gorge Niagara Gorge is an long canyon carved by the Niagara River along the Canada–United States border, between the U.S. state of New York and the Canadian province of Ontario. It begins at the base of Niagara Falls and ends downriver at the edge ...

's eastern edge from Niagara Avenue to U.S. Route 104 in Lewiston. At the time, the sections from the Rainbow Bridge to Niagara Street and US 104 to Ridge Road in Lewiston were under construction. Both were open to traffic by 1964. An extension of the parkway, formerly named the "Robert Moses State Parkway" after public works developer

Robert Moses Robert Moses (December 18, 1888 – July 29, 1981) was an American urban planner and public official who worked in the New York metropolitan area during the early to mid 20th century. Despite never being elected to any office, Moses is regarded ...

, now named the Niagara Scenic Parkway, north to

in Porter was completed by 1968. A spur to

was built as part of the extension. Robert Moses Pkwy 2001

The Niagara Scenic Parkway was to have been part of a vast network of limited-access highways in the Buffalo area. Under the 1971 Regional Highway Plan for the Buffalo–Niagara Falls area, the parkway would have been paralleled by a westward extension of the LaSalle Expressway, which would have extended from the Rainbow Bridge to I-190 along the proposed routing shown on maps 20 years before. Farther north, the northern end of the Niagara Scenic Parkway in Porter would have linked to a western extension of the

Lake Ontario State Parkway The Lake Ontario State Parkway is a parkway along the southern shore of Lake Ontario in Western New York in the United States. The western end of the highway is at a partial interchange within Lakeside Beach State Park in Carlton, Orleans Count ...

. Neither proposal ever came to fruition. The portion of the Niagara Scenic Parkway within Niagara Falls State Park was closed and largely removed in the early 1980s as a result of a movement to restore the park to the original layout conceived for it by landscape architect

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- ...

. As a result, the parkway became discontinuous. Its southern segment now began at the pre-existing interchange with Quay Street (John B. Daly Boulevard), which remained virtually untouched, while the southern end of the northern segment was reconfigured in the vicinity of downtown to terminate at an

at-grade intersection An intersection or an at-grade junction is a junction where two or more roads converge, diverge, meet or cross at the same height, as opposed to an interchange, which uses bridges or tunnels to separate different roads. Major intersections a ...

with Main Street (

). Traffic must now employ NY 384 to bridge the two sections of the parkway. The portions of the Niagara Scenic Parkway that still exist within Niagara Falls State Park are mostly in the vicinity of the Rainbow Bridge and are used for park business only. Abandoned NY 182 ramp

Additional downgrading of the highway has occurred in other areas. From Cedar Avenue in downtown Niagara Falls to I-190 in Lewiston, the southbound lanes were gradually converted into a recreation/bike trail during the 2000s, funneling all traffic into the former northbound lanes and turning the parkway into a two-lane highway. In February 2013, New York State announced that the segment of the Parkway from Main Street north to Findlay Drive would be removed, allowing improved access by residents and tourists on the city streets to the gorgefront. In early 2019, the stretch of parkway between Main Street (

) and Findlay Drive was permanently closed and demolition began starting with the section of viaduct near the

Whirlpool Rapids Bridge The Whirlpool Rapids Bridge, commonly known as the Whirlpool Bridge or the Lower Steel Arch Bridge (before 1937), is a spandrel braced, riveted, two-hinged arch bridge that crosses the international border between Canada and the United States, co ...

which was removed in mid-2019. Officials immediately started removing that segment while discussing the possible removal of a further stretch, from Findlay north to the NY 104/18F interchange in Lewiston. Engineering work for the removal of the first section began in April 2014. By July 2020, the section between Main Street and Findlay Drive was fully removed, and is set to be replaced by park land complete with bicycle and pedestrian paths. Between 2014 and 2016, the Riverway Project, part of the

Buffalo Billion Buffalo Billion is a New York state government project led by former Governor Andrew Cuomo that aims to invest $1 billion in the Buffalo, New York area economy. The project uses a combination of state grants and tax breaks to spur economic ...

state program, reconstructed and reconfigured a one-mile stretch of the Parkway near

Goat Island Goat Island (or Goat Islands) may refer to: Arts * Goat Island (performance group), a Chicago-based company * ''Goat Island'' (play), ''Delitto all'isola delle capre'', by Ugo Betti Places Australia * Goat Island (Port Jackson) in Sydney Harbou ...

. This included conversion of the John B. Daly Boulevard interchange into 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 Eng ...

which opened May 2015. On June 9, 2016,

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( ; ; born December 6, 1957) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 to 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected to the same position that his father, Mario Cuo ...

announced that the Robert Moses State Parkway would be renamed the Niagara Scenic Parkway.

Exit list

Fort Niagara spur

References

External links