The Rockaway Freeway is a road in the

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English language, English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History ...

Queens Queens is the largest by area of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Queens County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Located near the western end of Long Island, it is bordered by the ...

that was created from the old right-of-way of the

Long Island Rail Road The Long Island Rail Road , or LIRR, is a Rail transport, railroad in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, stretching from Manhattan to the eastern tip of Suffolk County, New York, Suffolk County on Long Islan ...

Rockaway Division The Far Rockaway Branch is an electrified rail line and service owned and operated by the Long Island Rail Road in the U.S. state of New York. The branch begins at Valley Interlocking, just east of Valley Stream station. From Valley Stream, th ...

in 1941–1942 as part of the project to eliminate

grade crossings Grade most commonly refers to: * Grading in education, a measurement of a student's performance by educational assessment (e.g. A, pass, etc.) * A designation for students, classes and curricula indicating the number of the year a student has reach ...

within New York City. The railroad line itself was elevated over the new automotive route and was incorporated into the

New York City Subway The New York City Subway is a rapid transit system in New York City serving the New York City boroughs, boroughs of Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and the Bronx. It is owned by the government of New York City and leased to the New York City Tr ...

system as the IND Rockaway Line () in June 1956. Because of the large number of concrete posts supporting the elevated subway, the Freeway has consistently been hazardous for drivers: at least one driver died from crashing into a pillar. A portion of the road, between Beach 67th Street and Beach 73rd Street, was closed permanently in 2009 to make way for a retail transit plaza in connection with the new Arverne-by-the-Sea construction development.

References

External links

"Historical Views of the Rockaways: An Attempt At Railroad Crossing Elimination In The Late 1920s"
Transportation in Rockaway, Queens Streets in Queens, New York {{NYC-road-stub